Honey Bebe Delivery Flight South (3)

After a good night's sleep (and a delicious meal) at Neville and Tessa Sutherland's lovely house which is only 2 minutes from the airfield, we drove to Omaka, paid the landing fee and hangar rent for 1 night at the Aero Club office and pulled Honey Bebe out into the sun.  It was another stunning day:

All part of the service!  Neville cleaning my windscreen.

I took off around 10.15 (on Thursday 2 July) for the continuation of my big adventure flying South.  It was the first time I had flown Honey Bebe in the South Island so there was a lack of familiarity with the lie of the land compared to the North Island.  Out of Omaka I climbed up and had to make some turns to get over the Taylor Pass which is at 1,000 feet and then I was flying across the Awatere Valley.

Lake Grassmere and the salt works in the distance.

Then on to the Kaikoura Coast - that is State Highway 1 and the railway just above the prop (click to enlarge).

Following the coast South, here near the Marlborough and Canterbury boundary.

Snow on the Seaward Kaikouras.

Getting nearer to Kaikoura and the coast is pretty rugged.

And we are at the Kaikoura Peninsula, the airfield is South of the town.

At Kaikoura airfield for 15 litres of Avgas, flight time from Omaka 1 hour 5 minutes.

Continuing on South from Kaikoura in lovely conditions.  SH 1 has gone inland but the railway sticks near the coast - you can see it just above the nose (click to enlarge if you want o see it better).

On past the Conway Flat area.  Obviously I was in IFC mode.

A good check point is the mouth of the Waiau River.  Time for a radio position report.

Past Gore Bay and the Cathedral Cliffs.  Wonderful views!

Past the settlement of Motunau, and nearly at the Northern Canterbury Plains.  Look how calm the sea was. 

When you get to the plains change frequency to the Rangiora CFZ at Amberly and follow the beach.

Until you get to the mouth of the Ashley River (radio position call) and follow the river up to Rangiora airfield.

I landed on Runway 07 at Rangiora to be met by Dave Paull and he took the photo. Then we went into town for an posh artisinal pie.  Flight time from Kaikoura to Rangiora was 1 hour 10 minutes.

I did fly on South from Rangiora later in the afternoon but I will leave posting about that until next time as it proved to be a somewhat "interesting" flight.