Route of Flight - We arrived at ABE around 0530 and the visibilty was 0.5 miles due to fog. We ended up waiting it out and were able to depart around 0930, but there was a long band (north to south) of rain showers moving west to east around the PA/Ohio border when we departed. We stopped at University Park to check the weather and deterimined it was ok to head northwest about 60 NM to Dubois and check the weather again. We made it to Dubois with no problem and got something to eat. By the time we were done eating the weather band had split right down the middle leaving us a clear shot to ASW. Lets go!

En Route to ASW - We finally broke out into the clear and were able to get some altitude just after passing New Castle (UCP). It was pretty hot and a little bumpy, so JJ was not feeling so great, but she did fine once I was able to get up in the cooler air. The Cessna really flew great and it hauled all of our stuff no problem. We departed with full fuel and about 135 lbs. of gear.

Fuel Stop at Warsaw, IN - Short final at ASW for our first required fuel stop. It is a nice little airport and the local airport folks were great. We shot the breeze with them briefly and had to move out. We are way behind schedule at this point as the folks are already on the ground in Dekalb. We fueled up and headed out.

En Route to the Rendezvous Point - The folks had to wait for us for about 2.5 hours in Dekalb, but the guys at the airport treated them good while they waited. My Dad inquired as to when they closed and he found out they would be closed before we arrived. He asked the fuel guys if they would be willing to stay over to fuel us up and they said no problem. Thanks guys!

Finally Arrived at DKB - As soon as the prop stopped turning the fuel truck was filling the tanks. I gave the guy a $20 tip for staying over. It was the least I could do. They were very gracious. We had time to take a restroom break and jumped right back in the plane. We were about an hour and a half from OSH and we didn't leave until 1830. If you have never been to OSH you should know that they close the airport promptly at 2000 with no exceptions unless you are bingo fuel (they will check when you land if you declare a fuel shortage).

Arrival at OSH - We were right base for Niner at 1958 and my Dad was right behind us. There was also someone on a left base for Niner. Luckily the controller made him break off and let us in (I think because we were a flight of two). At any rate, we were the last two planes in. I think my mains touched down at exactly 2000. WOW...what a trip! The guy on the left base had to divert somewhere else (my apologies to him!).

Arrival at OSH - Here is a good shot of runway Niner as we turned base to final.

Short Final for Niner - Cleared to land runway Niner! We made it! We camp in the North 40 which is just to the right of runway Niner. You can see some planes over there on the right hand side which is where we are headed. You just turn off in the grass when speed permits and taxi over to the camping area.

Campsite - We got the campsite set up and now we can relax for an entire week of nothing but airplanes! Our tents are the two green ones and the two blue ones on either side of each airplane. This is living the high life!

A beautiful morning at OSH - I have to say I really enjoy the camping part of OSH. This is a shot Jennifer took of the morning sunrise. As you can see the airplane makes a good towel holder. If you don't get up early at OSH the showers get real crowded real fast.

More OSH sunrise - Jennifer took another picture from behind the Comanche. It was fairly cool the night before these pics.

Sunrise from the flight line - Another great shot of the sunrise from the flight line flags. This is where we spend most of our time at OSH watching planes land and listening to the controllers on the radio. If you have never experienced it you need to! Once you get a taste of you will be hooked.

Daylight and starting to get crowded - The north 40 camping area fills up pretty quick. You can see they pack them in.

Helicopter Tour of OSH - We decided to spend some time over at the EAA museum and right across from the museum are some EAA hangars where you can get a ride over the EAA grounds and OSH in a helicopter. My dad took a picture of me, Jennifer, Olef, and Stu waiting in line to catch a ride. This was our first ever ride in a helicopter, so we were looking forward to it.

Flying over our campsite in the north 40 - It was tough to get the campsite in the center of the shot because we were turning pretty hard when we went over. Our planes are in the far left row 5th and 6th down from the half a wing you see at the top of the photo. It is pretty easy to see the red wingtips on the Cessna.

A good shot of show center - No, this is not a plane crashing on the runway. It is one of the rocket propelled trucks that was performing with the Waco bi-planes. You can see White Knight and Spaceship One in the middle of show center. This was still early in the show, so it was not as crowded as it gets on the main weekend of the show.

Aerial shot of the north 40 - This is a good shot of the north 40 camping area. You can see how much it has filled up (on both sides of the runway) since we first landed. That little red building is one of the shower stations. Right across from that is a line of porta johns (just to the right of the small trees along the fence). I think the worst part of the whole trip for Jennifer is having to use a porta john for an entire week. God bless her for putting up with my hobbies!

RV parking/camping area - This is a good shot of the RV (Van's Aircraft...not Recreational Vehicles) parking/camping area. That entire square just north of the car parking lot and the red Honda tent is mostly all RVs. Right across the road where the three green roofs are is more RV parking. There are also quite a few composite airplanes (quickies, dragonflys, long ezs, etc.) in back (west side) of the parking area. Runway niner is at the top of the picture pointing out into lake Winnebago.

Another shot of the RVs - There are a bunch of RVs at OSH. It is really great to go as a builder because you can get some good ideas/tips from other builders.

The OSH crew in front of Space Ship One and White Knight - This was our crew at OSH 2005. My folks on the left, Jennifer and Me in the center, and Stu and Olef (back right) on the right. Stu flew in with my folks and Olef drove in and camped with us.

Taking a break from all of the walking we normally do - Thank god for the Jiffy chair. They are small folding aluminum chairs with cane type handles that you can carry everywhere you go. We try and make good use of any shade we can find when we can find it. We usually watch the airshow one day, and most other days will watch from the campsite with a cold beer in hand. That is me on the left, Stu just to my right, and big Ed on the right.

JJ in front of the Global Flyer - It was pretty cool watching White Knight and the Global Flyer fly in and land. Here is a good picture of JJ in front of the Global Flyer (notice the handy Jiffy chair in hand).

Typical mode of operation at the campsite - I am so glad we took the Cessna because it provides good shade. I did bang my head real hard on the trailing edge of one of the ailerons, but it was worth it for the shade. Nice farmer's tan dude! I have got to get out of PA!

More lounging at the camp - Here is a good shot of my Dad doing some chair flying. He gave me grief about flying a plane in that had the wings on the wrong side, but he sure seemed to like to sit under it.

Stu flying another chair - Here is a shot of Stu taking in the shade. Notice the hand held radio in the cup holder on the left arm of the chair. We always have the radio on to listen in on the controllers.

Good morning sleepy head - I think Jennifer slept in on this day. That is a world famous Oshkosh doughnut in front of her. They are the best in the world and they are steaming hot when you get them. The line is usually out the door for these guys so you need to get there early.

It always rains on you at OSHKOSH - Here is a picture of our tent after a torrential downpour. The winds were blowing over 60 mph and it rained forever! We had actually gone to dinner the night before and it started raining like crazy when we were at the restaurant. We ended up closing the place down at around 0100 and it was still raining. When we got back to the tent there were 3 to 4 inches of water in it. You can see one of the broken tent posts sticking out of the top of our tent. Luckily my folks had a 6 man tent from Cabela's that was rated for this kind of weather. There were a bunch of tents in the dumpster the next day. I'm getting a Cabela's tent for next year!

Olef on the breezy - There are a couple of EAA breezys that give free rides starting at 0700 every day. This year Olef, my Mom, and Jennifer took a ride. I think I will go next year. You need to get there early because the line gets long pretty fast.

Houston...the Eagle has landed - Here is a picture of my Mom returning from her breezy trip. It is pretty cool. These guys get in the pattern with everyone else (C5A Galaxy, F16's, B17's, P51's, etc.).

Good shot of JJ & I by White Knight & Space Ship One - She is still smiling, which is a good sign. Burt Rutan can really come up with some crazy designs.

Finally Jennifer gets away from the porta johns - It was a great week and I hated to leave, but it was nice to get home to a regular bed, a nice shower, and a regular bathroom! We departed runway niner and flew out over the lake before turning south towards Joliet. ASW was the first fuel stop, New Castle (UCP) was the second, and we ended up landing at University Park to spend the night. When we left UCP I got a weather briefing and the guy didn't say anything about poor visibility. As we got closer to UNV the haze was so bad I couldn't really make out the horizon but I could see the ground fine. Better safe than sorry as it was getting dark!