Arizona Bloom
Cathedral Rock of Red Rock State Park It is 6 am at the Grants, NM, airport. The sun is still hidden east behind the Sandia Mountains. My friend Manfried from Epernay, France, and I are ready for the main event of this trip with our Zenith HDS 601, N314LB: The westbound leg from Grants to Prescott, AZ, via Gallup, Winslow, and Sedona. During the takeoff run, acceleration of the plane at gross weight and 8,500 ft density altitude is impressive. Using much less than half of the runway, the plane leaps into the air and begins a solid climb. This performance is due to the new Sensenich propeller, which efficiently uses an engine output reduced to 50 hp due to altitude and temperature. As we pass through 1,000 ft AGL, the sun appears behind us over the horizon and illuminates ahead of us colorful sandstone formations, forests, and hills. We level off at 8,500 ft MSL, which translates to 2,000 ft AGL, our goal for the first part of the leg. Below ...