Planes and Boats and Trains

May 30th, one-day trip to Portland for the monthly medical adventure.

This was planned to be an Angelflight trip, but the weather was unstable all week and no pilot signed up for the southbound mission. At the last minute arranged to fly to Seattle on Kenmore Air, then Alaska Air to Portland. The actual tally of modes of transportation was six: car to the airport in Port Angeles, Kenmore's Cessna to Boeing Field, van shuttle to SeaTac, commuter plane to Portland, light rail from PDX to downtown, streetcar to OHSU on the South Waterfront.

Peninsula College (where I work) from the Kenmore Air flight, May 30, 2013 (Click for larger image.)

The familiar activities at the clinic building, Oregon Health and Science University's Center for Health and Healing: lab work, something to eat and some coffee, waiting to see Dr. P. up on the 7th floor, talking to doctor, interns, research assistants, the research nurse. (It's a clinical trial, you will remember. I am a science project.) Posting to twitter. Studying the view through the window wall.

Zidell Yards has started laying a new barge down there by the foot of the tramway. They made visible progress just in the couple of hours I was there. The previous barge— last seen on April 29 down on the ramp, apparently ready for launch— actually didn't set sail until May 22. South Waterfront blog has pictures. Its final paint job proclaims ST-23 a Shaver Transportation barge, and it's now on their fleet list. ST-23 will be going up and down through the locks on the Columbia River, carrying grain. Good luck to you, barge.

The Aerial Tram sails past the window wall on the 7th floor. May 30, 2013. (Click for larger image.) Zidell Marine's new barge makes progress already (Click for larger image.)

The northbound transportation arrangements had rearranged themselves in the course of the day, with much emailing and mobile-phoning. My northbound Angelflight pilot, Jeremy, thought conditions weren't good for him to pick me up at the general aviation airport in Hillsboro (ice aloft), so he arranged a ticket for me on Alaska Air to Seattle, where he would pick me up and fly me on to Port Angeles. So the ground transportation Earth Angel, Tom, changed his plan and instead of fetching me to Hillsboro, he and his wife drove me out to PDX. I got on standby for an earlier flight than the one booked, and pretty soon was in Seattle. Jeremy met me at the curb and we headed through rush hour traffic for Renton Municipal Airport (map), where his flying club keeps its planes.

Getting ready in Renton (Click for larger image.)

Starting from someplace entirely different, the line of flight was all new territory until after we crossed Hood Canal.

Part of our line of flight. (Click for larger image.)

Then the camera lost the GPS signal, alas, so pins on the photo app stop there, and I can't tell just where we were for this random view of green Sequim hinterlands...

Sequim below, May 30, 2013 (Click for larger image.) The log yard is filling up again; Port Angeles harbor. (Click for larger image.)

Jeremy made a featherlight landing in Port Angeles, and pulled in to Rite Brothers FBO. I walked down the way to the airport terminal, where I had left my car at 5AM, so many transitions ago it was impossible to believe it was still the same day.

Thank you to Jeremy, Tom, and Angelflight, and all the kindly people at OHSU, too.

Back in Port Angeles (Click for larger image.)