Independence Day

For the Independence Day weekend we went up to Independence a day early so that we could leave off the girls and go on a date. We saw Jurassic World, which was awesome, and then came back and sat around the fire in the backyard.

In the morning we went to the parade along Main Street. Independence actually pulled off a better parade than the Freedom Festival parade (way to go small town!), although there could have been fewer tractors in the lineup. It used to seem so weird to see farm tractors in a parade, but it almost seems normal now, heh.

Some kids who sat next to me:

Now that's a snow thrower:

Hey, it's Joe Winters!

Can you see Emily?

After the parade there were some bands playing in the park along the river and small plane rides (see previous post), so we skipped the music and went on a plane ride. Later in the afternoon Rose and I went to the Wapsi and skipped rocks for a while and watched the water going over the dam. In the evening we watched the fireworks:

Flying High

Independence Day in Independence was a blast, but the most fun thing we did was go for a scenic ride in a Cessna! During the parade that morning we saw a plane fly overhead pulling a banner that advertised $20 plane rides and that was an adventure we couldn't pass up. Cynthia and I drove out the the rural airstrip after the parade and went up for a ride over town and got some cool shots.

The plane was a slow-moving Cessna 172 Skyhawk II:

When we met our pilot we were surprised to see that she looked like she was in high school, but as it turns out she was a college student and had been flying planes for years. We both thought she looked a lot like Lauren Lapkus, heh.

We piled in and taxied down to the head of the runway:

Woo hoooo!

I told the pilot that I was a photographer and she let me open my window so I could get clearer shots:

As soon as I stuck my camera out the window I realized how hard it was going to be keep it steady as I took pictures. It's not the same as sticking something out a car window, a plane travels faster and that wind will about beat you to death if you don't sit back. Made me glad that I stuck to my self-imposed rule of never holding my camera without it strapped around my neck.

We're flying!

Independence, Iowa:

The Wapsi River:

The south side of town with the old high school and the public pool:

The old mill along Main St.:

People out cruisin' the Wapsi:

The train depot. The pilot (I forgot her name) banked sharply in a few spots so I could get a good shot straight down:

I like this shot mainly because the way the lens gives the horizon some curvature and it makes the earth feel so much smaller:

There's St John's Church in the middle and the Buchanan County Courthouse at the bottom:

And the old mill again as we circle back over town:

Lots of trees and stuff:

Banking to line up with the runway:

Then we landed and that was a bummer because the time went so fast while we were flying high.

Safety First