August 1, 2023 – Kipling, Saskatchewan
This cloud affected me from two perspectives today. Late in the evening it was a colourful backdrop to a game of fetch.
Earlier in the day, the same Towering Cumulus cloud was an armed fortress obstructing my flight into Carlyle (CJQ3).
Brother Brad had asked for some help with a renovation project, so I took the opportunity to fly out to our hometown of Arcola, in southern Saskatchewan, to give him a hand. The trip had three purposes, reconnect with family, build some flying hours, and improve my carpentry skills.
Two of the three worked out.
My pre-flight weather briefing predicted thunderstorms in the vicinity of Carlyle, the airport nearest my destination. The forecast anticipated that the storm would move off by noon. My estimated arrival time for the flight from Springbank was 1:00 pm, so I felt confident filing a flight plan and heading out. I departed at 9:30 but kept an eye on the radar weather imagery along the 3 ½ hour route.
There were some low clouds just after takeoff, but GSXS and I pushed through without violating Visual Flight Rules (much).
The autopilot was engaged when I encountered this momentary whiteout while still in Calgary airspace.
Neither Auto nor I are licensed to fly without a visual ground reference, but we agreed that transitioning through this small puffy cloud was a safe procedure, so we carried on.
Flying from Calgary to Regina is much like the drive, you have to appreciate wide-open spaces. Except that the prairie sky was not “wide-open” today. Smoke from BC forest fires prevented visibility beyond 5 – 10 miles, so I cruised along in a hazy bubble of air, taking notice of things directly below.
In a field near Cabri, Saskatchewan, I encountered what is either an alien spacecraft landing field or a Ducks Unlimited nesting area.
I didn’t see any geese or ducks, so I reckon it is an alien airport, (although I never saw any space creatures either).
It is always fun to communicate with Moose Jaw Military Air Traffic Control on the way through their combat zone:
GSXS: Moose Jaw Military, this is Cessna 182 Gulf, Sierra, X-Ray, Sierra.
MM: Sierra, X-Ray, Sierra, Moose Jaw Military.
GSXS (What I wanted to say): Sierra, X-Ray, Sierra is ten miles on a vector of 240°. We are in pursuit of a Russian MiG-35 surveillance aircraft at 23,000’, at Mach 1.4. Request military tracking and assistance.
GSXS (What I actually said): Sierra, X-Ray, Sierra is VFR from Springbank to Carlyle. We are ten miles to the west at 7,500’. Request transit through the zone.
MM: Sierra, X-Ray, Sierra, squawk 4-3-5-5, you are cleared through the zone, remain seven thousand five hundred, monitor this frequency until further notice.
GSXS: Sierra, X-Ray, Sierra, Willco.
I skimmed through the northern edge of the military zone and MM cleared me back to enroute frequencies. Once I was clear of military air space, I checked the weather radar image again to see what was happening at Carlyle.
The storm had moved south but not as far as I had hoped. The system, with tops at 30,000’, was sitting stubbornly just south of Carlyle airport. I texted Brad who was waiting on the ground for me. He said the sky was clearing and the wind had gone down, but there was still some gusting.
I flew to a position 5 miles north of the airport and did an orbit. The wind seemed to have calmed so I attempted a fly-over to check the windsock. About three miles out, the storm sent a microburst my way reminding me of the destructive potential of even a distant storm. The burst hit the aircraft hard enough that I was slammed against the roof of the cockpit, all my gear sitting on the empty co-pilot’s seat, launched, and scattered on the floor.
I initiated a wobbly 180° turn, leaving a paperclip-shaped trail behind the airplane.
The nearby town of Kipling has an asphalt runway, so I retreated there and landed to wait out the storm.
I hadn’t thought of the town of Kipling for decades, but when I was visiting my cousin Joyce last week, she reminded me that she had once lived in Kipling. When we were kids, we used to visit Joyce’s family here. For the second time in just over a week, Kipling is on my radar. I decided to get reacquainted while I waited.
The town hasn’t changed much in 50 years, which is a good thing. Many southern Saskatchewan towns have dwindled, many to non-existence. Kipling seems to be holding its own. The town still has a hospital, a car dealership, and an RCMP detachment, along with a seemingly prosperous retail district.
There is one feature in Kipling that wasn’t here when I was a kid. The town has erected a giant red paperclip in the middle of town
I may have known this before, but I had forgotten that an online blogger acquired a house in Kipling by making fourteen trades, starting with a red paperclip. The blogger, and the town, made international news headlines with the stunt, in 2006.
After my tour of Kipling, I checked the weather again. I was satisfied that the storm was far enough south to attempt another landing. I fired up the plane and retraced my twisted route back to Carlyle.
I arrived safely, albeit a bit too fast and still too choppy for a perfect landing.
All in all, Tuesday August 1, 2023, was a good day. A day defined by …
… Paperclips.
Not all of my flights this week were twisted. I took my soon-to-be-daughter-in-law on a flight to Rocky Mountain House, Crimson Lake, and back along the foothills. Emma took the controls for a while; she is a natural flyer.
Brad Paton
I didn’t realize that hammer to the thumb was that bad😬. But I would still have worked you hard. That was a couple very hot days of replacing siding-still much appreciated
Russ Paton
It was a great couple of days, once I figured out which nail to hammer!
Millie
I remember the national news story. And glad to hear you are on the ground safely.
Millie
Russ Paton
Thanks Millie, the flight home was much better. The guy must have been a good trader, to go from a paperclip to a house. I think there was a snowmobile and some concert tickets along the way….