Napa Bike Tour
I flew my RV6-A with a friend from Placerville KPVF (east of Sacramento) to Napa KAPC for a day of sightseeing and some exercise. As we planned the trip we discovered the "Vine Trail," which runs from Napa to Yountville, which would allow us to get some exercise while enjoying scenic views of Napa valley. Yountville is a trendy small town with some great restaurants to enjoy at the other end of the Vine Trail. The plan was to fly into KAPC, get into downtown NAPA to rent a couple bicycles and ride the trail to Yountville (9 mi). We would grab lunch there and return.
The day turned out to be perfect. The weather was in the mid 60s; cool enough that we didn't get hot biking on the trail, but warm enough we didn't need to bundle up when we were walking around. Downtown Napa is about 6 miles from the airport. We originally planned to get an Uber, but as we looked at Google Maps it suggested a bus stop about 3/4 mile away. We decided to take a risk on public transportation and save $40. After a 30 min wait, the bus showed up as scheduled, and we were on our way. We rented bikes at Napa Valley Bike Shop. The bike trail is fairly flat, and we enjoyed a 19mi round trip ride with an excellent lunch at R&D Restaurant in Yountville.
For the flight home it was getting dark. Fortunately I have kept my night currency and it turned out to be a magical night trip. The sky was perfectly clear, the stars were bright, and the winds were minimal. Landing at KPVF at night is fun because it is a plateau, sitting on top of the surrounding landscape. On a moonless night you watch the airport "appear" as you activate the runway lights. There is a slight uphill on RWY 23 so you need to be careful on your round out, but our landing was smooth and uneventful.
All in all a great trip and another memory to file away as part of my piloting experience with my RV6-A.