I wanted to share the pictures I took last month at my Mountain Flying Training in Idaho, also known as the Back Country Course. The first group of pictures are flying related, as we trained each day on the nearby airstrips. Then the last group of pictures are all related to the fabulous place we stayed, called Allison Ranch. Myself and two other students, Aaron and John, and two instructors, Tim and Scott, set off for northern Idaho one Sunday. We stayed three nights at Allison Ranch, heading out each day to practice on challenging airstrips down the Salmon River gorge from Allison Ranch. There are no roads into Allison Ranch, just a (very challenging) airstrip. The care takers Jim and Gloria made our stay wonderful with good conversation, good food, and amazing stories of the many bears that Jim has encountered in the area and the harrowing adventures he has had navigating the Salmon river by boat. The majestic roar of the Salmon River, the breathtaking pine covered mountain sides, and the amazing tranquility were not captured on camera but they were captured in my mind! The lessons learned in the airplane were intense as I experienced the types of extreme approaches and airstrips I will face in Indonesia. When flying, Aaron and I split time flying and observing/taking pictures. We had a blast. Some of these pictures are me photographing Aaron, and vise versa.
