We always say that a tour is successful when: the weather behaves, the pilots behave, and the airplanes behave. For the most part, that was 100% true for the Wild Blue Yonder. Congratulations, Team WBY!
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So much to tell, so little free time to tell it. Suffice it to say that the tour is going well and everybody loves Gila Country! A great stay was had by all enjoying the small but culturally-rich town of Silver City--home to the Palace Hotel, Syzygy Tile, the Red Dot Art Weekend, a fantastic history museum, local ambassadors Cissy, Charmeine and Patrick, and great food provided by Diane's and Little Toad.  The green "Hat of Shame" is certainly making its rounds. Here are some of the deserving individuals thus far. On time, on schedule, on track with all 9 planes (after one small hiccup), destined for Silver City, NM.  It was a beautiful day to board the Durango-Silverton's Alamosa parlor car for a fall colors ride up to Silverton, Colorado! Hours aboard the train: 3.5 Quality of car attendant: 5 out of 5 stars (thanks, Ellie!) Parkwest birthdays celebrated: 1 Elevation gain during trip: nearly 3,000 (Silverton, CO is at 9,300') Fall color in Colorado: the best that Cat Herder has ever seen Horseback riding, campfires, skeet shooting and a Conestoga wagon for overnight accommodations! Great fun. Lovely flight to Durango this morning with 9 planes enjoying the smooth air, blue skies and miles of yellow aspen trees at their peak of color. Tomorrow we'll board the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and enjoy deluxe service aboard the Alamosa Parlor Car to enjoy the peaks and colors of the Colorado autumn. So far, the only wearers of the Hat of Shame have been Collin and the Cat Herder! 
This tradition was started last year, when we found it necessary to gently "call out" individual cats who might be in trouble for one reason or another. Last year's version was this little straw number--no surprise that it was the MEN causing the problems. Robin and Shane provide this year's sassy, lime green version for this trip. Stay tuned to see who will be wearing it...
It's a beautiful day to kick of the Wild Blue Yonder tour. The Santa Fe sky is cloudless, the Plaza is filled with arts, crafts and tourists, and the recently-renovated La Fonda Hotel is its usual bustling hub of activity. As near as I can tell, all the planes are here, so I'm expecting no vacant seats at today's 3:30 briefing. We get to enjoy another day here tomorrow, learning a bit about the art, history and diverse culture of "The City Different" before launching for Durango, Colorado on Tuesday.
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AuthorCat Herder (aka Marisa) has been guiding pilot tours in the American West for over twenty years. Keep tabs on your Parkwest pilot friends, National Park news and other tidbits here! Archives
November 2018
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