[Leica] Ketchikan float planes

[hlritter at bex.net (Howard Ritter)]

Thanks for the link, Howard. I enjoyed the additional views, even of the 
Cessna and the turboprop-converted DH Otter (?). ;-)


> On Jan 31, 2016, at 8:49 PM, H&ECummer <cummer at netvigator.com> wrote:
> 
> Hi Howard,
> We have been through Ketchikan twice - once on the Diamond Princess in 
> 2012 and last year on the Crystal Symphony. On each cruise we were docked 
> in the same position and I had a good view
> of the float planes taking off and landing. On the first cruise we took 
> the fiord side trip and while we were in the fiords we saw a float plane 
> land as you describe. Both cruises the weather was
> wonderful in Ketchikan and we enjoyed the place very much. There is a very 
> good bookshop there and I bought a book on the Beavers. It was The 
> Immortal Beaver by Sean Rossiter if you are interested. The float plane 
> pictures from the first cruise are here: 
> <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/FloatPlanes/FamAirKw.jpg.html
>  
> <http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Howard+Cummer/FloatPlanes/FamAirKw.jpg.html>>
> Appreciate you looking and commenting. Thanks much,
> Howard
> 
> Date: Sun, 31 Jan 2016 00:03:57 -0500
> From: Howard Ritter <hlritter at bex.net <mailto:hlritter at bex.net>>
> To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org <mailto:lug at 
> leica-users.org>>
> Subject: Re: [Leica] Ketchikan float planes
> 
> Hi, Howard?
> 
> What cruise line/ship were you on? In 2003 my family and I took a flight 
> to Fairbanks, train to Denali and Anchorage, and bus to Seward. From there 
> we took a Princess cruise ship to Vancouver, with stops at Ketchikan and 
> other ports along the way. At Ketchikan we had some hours for excursions, 
> and I had one of the most memorable experiences of my life. We signed up 
> for a flight into the mountains, and as a sailplane pilot and a fan of 
> prop-driven airplanes, especially those with radial engines, I was 
> delighted to find that we?d be flying in a de Havilland Beaver, the float 
> plane shown in the first series of your photos. As the heaviest passenger, 
> I was put into the right front seat, beside the pilot, and had just about 
> my best flight ever. We flew into the interior, low over high mountain 
> meadows, through valleys with slopes above our altitude, and landed on a 
> glacial lake. The pilot brought the Beaver to a stop and killed the 
> engine. I and several others got out onto one of the floa
> ts and stood there in perfect silence, taking in the lake and the 
> mountains and the beautiful aircraft we were standing on. The whole flight 
> was a transcendent experience.
> 
> I love those Beavers! Thanks for the stroll down memory lane. BTW, I too 
> have the 80-400 VR, which I used on my trip as well.
> 
> ?howard
> 
> 
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