Thruster Sausage Cob Tour 2002, The Story.

The first thought is, what can be achieved during a two week holiday, the answer is, actually, quite a lot. The latest generation of microlight aircraft will happily go from A to B at speeds between 80 and 100 mph, consider that you do not have to follow winding roads or wait at junctions and you will see that the distance it is possible to travel in one day is quiet substantial.

Alan Woolley had ordered just such an aircraft a 'Thruster Sprint' which is just like a conventional aircraft and flies with a stick and rudder as opposed to the 'hang glider' types more commonly associated with microlighting. This aircraft could easily take us on a flying holiday, the only thing to decide is which bit of the UK do we visit. It did not take long to realise that we could try to visit all of it.

With this in mind we began to plan, flying anything other than a very short trip without planning is asking for trouble so we began to plan, and plan, and plan. We decided that an anticlockwise trip around the coastline of mainland UK, starting from our 'home' field at Watnall, would be possible and then, with a daily flying time of between 3 and 4 hours as a target looked for places to stay overnight. It took a few weeks to finally have a plan that we were sticking to without further amendment, this was printed out, we gave it the name of the 'Thruster Sausage Cob Tour 2002', as an excuse to dine in the airfield restaurants during the fortnight, and we were ready.

As the day chosen for the start approached we watched the weather, this was the only thing we could not resolve by planning, we just had to hope that we dropped lucky.

It was a fairly gloomy looking morning as we pulled G-CBIP out of the hangar and finished all the packing and pre flight checking, the weather could be better but it was flyable, we were going to go as planned. Our aim on this first day was to head for East Fortune, a semi derelict airfield just East of Edinburgh, this was the home to a microlight school and club so we expected to find a warm welcome and like minded souls.

The little hand was on 10 as we took off and made our way northish, following the M1 for a fair distance and then heading off towards the side of Leeds to by pass all the military airfields that sit along side the A1. We were not going to go straight for East Fortune, we had planned a stop off at an airfield in Northumberland called Eshott, this was another airfield where a thriving microlight school was based. As we passed by Leeds we heard that the Red Arrows were in the area and perhaps heading our way, albeit some 1000' lower than us, it would have been nice to say we saw them, we didn't.

It was in this area and as we started to cross the Yorkshire moors that we saw our first bit of rain and began to feel the effects of the weather. Turbulence is to be expected whatever kind of weather you have, so it came as no surprise as we felt these first few bumps. It only seemed like minutes later and we were changing heading out towards the coast and the airfield at Eshott. This was spotted from some distance away and we set up for the first landing of our trip, as usual it passed without any drama and we taxied to the clubhouse where we were greeted like long lost brothers, a buffet meal and copious amount of tea and coffee were laid on, we were even given a lift into a nearby village so that we could buy some fuel. This is the kind of thing that makes microlighting so good, you meet such nice people.

While we were being looked after the wind picked up and the aircraft at Eshott were all put back to bed, we did not have such luxury and we thought that the wind wasn't too bad, Alan felt confident that he could get us up and away, and so we went for it. It was though a more interesting take off than the one back at Watnall earlier.

We headed now for Holy island and a good look at what was called Lindisfarne, we saw it, we flew past it but it has to be said we were probably more aware of the massive clouds we could see building up ahead, each was dumping gallons of rainwater in a shower so thick that it looked like a massive grey column from ground to cloud, we needed to avoid these at all costs. By allowing for the amount that the wind would drift these clouds off and our expected time into each area we did manage to skirt around these clouds and eventually we were heading East from the coast towards Edinburgh and looking for the airfield at East Fortune. With a bit of practise it is amazing how easy it is to see these airfields from the air so, with a few miles to run we had the airfield in sight and were setting up for a landing. Having landed and taxied to the buildings we found the place deserted. Within minutes the rain clouds followed us in and we were having to sit in the aircraft to shelter. We did not fancy putting a tent up in this so, once the rain eased off, we looked around the buildings and adjacent scrap yard and found a nice caravan that had been left open, probably for us we felt so we put our sleeping bags in there. Having secured our kit and the aircraft we caught a bus into town, had a couple of drinks and a bag of chips and made our way back for an early night, the forecast for tomorrow was for low cloud and crummy weather coming in from the West, we had the Scottish mountains to cross as we were going down to Carlisle. The dangers of this flight lay heavy on our minds as we had an early night and readied our brains and bodies for what was sure to come.

Just after 5am the next morning we were up and repacking the aircraft, if we were going to make it to Carlisle we had to go, and go soon. For the residents of East Fortune, this is why we were taking off and flying near to your houses at 5.30 am. We had a plan if it started to go pear shaped, we were simply going to head east, away from the incoming bad weather and go back to Eshott. Having a way out made it a little easier to convince ourselves that we were not heading towards disaster.

Before too long we could see the ground rising ahead of us, we could also see that there was an apparently impenetrable bank of cloud sitting just over it, we kept going for a closer look. As we neared we could see that the gap between to two layers we needed to avoid was getting smaller, in fact we were faced with the prospect of flying down a valley, this thought really did not appeal, so, with the knowledge that ahead of us we could see sunshine on the ground, and big lumps of it at that, we knew that this cloud layer was not solid, and that if we went above it we would still have sight of the ground and be safe, so that's what we did.

Now we felt much better and the view was terrific. Approaching the southern end of the mountains the ground levelled out and all the clouds disappeared as we meandered around the areas we had to avoid and made a landing on the massively long runway at Carlisle International Airport. It was now 7am. Leaving early to beat the weather had worked, unfortunately it got us into Carlisle 2 hours before anything opened, all we could do was wait. This gave me chance to have a walk around the old aircraft making up the static displays of the aviation museum. Climbing out of a small aircraft like a microlight and then standing underneath a Vulcan bomber was a bit of an eye opener.

Once the staff had arrived and opened up we had chance for a wash and brush up, refuel the aircraft and then over to the café for breakfast. We then found that the café did not officially open until 10.30am but the kind staff made an exception and provided us with the first sausage cob of the tour. As we ate, the staff of the local microlight school warned us of more approaching bad weather and so we climbed back into the aircraft and set off for our next overnight stopping point at Cark at the bottom end of the lake district.

The wind had picked up whilst we were at Carlisle and the departure was erm… interesting. We initially made our way west towards the coast and could then see that following the coastline south was a bank of cloud. This gave us a good excuse to wind on the power and take the machine up to 5500', be well above the cloud with a good view of the coast about 1 mile to our right, if you have never flown above cloud you are missing a real thrill, it is a wonderfully surreal landscape that makes you feel privileged every time you get to see it. Nothing lasts forever and around 1 hour after leaving Carlisle we were calling up Cark on the radio for clearance to land, Cark is a very active parachute centre, you don't want to fly into their zone if any parachutists are on the way down! We had to wait for about 10 minutes whilst a drop was completed and we were allowed in. Touching down and being directed to the far corner of the airfield we could see just how busy it was. We spent a good hour watching them go up and come down again. This evening was spent in the company of Alans sister and her family who live fairly locally.

Next morning after a good breakfast we were back at Cark, and readying the aircraft for its next trip, we were aiming to go to Caernarfon in Wales for a fuel stop, this meant a fairly long water crossing as soon as we had taken off. We put a good deal of height on the altimeter before we headed south across Morecambe Bay, it was a dirty looking place and there was the odd bit of cloud drifting in from the west. This part of the journey was something to be endured more than enjoyed, we flew along the coast, past Blackpool and Liverpool before heading west along the North Wales coast.

As we approached Anglesey Island we tried to call RAF Valley who operate fast jets at low level in the area but could get no response, we later found that the frequency published in our expensive book, brought just for the trip was wrong, brilliant, not. We made our way down to Caernarfon where we were able to fill up the fuel tank and get some lunch, it was a nice little airfield to visit. Once we left Caernarfon we flew across the peninsula towards Tremadog Bay where RAF Llanbedr was sited, we asked them to allow us fly through their area and they refused, damn. They asked us instead to fly at least 2 miles east of them, that would have been a good plan, except, the cloud there was lower than the mountains, not a good idea, so once again it was on with the power and get above it all. We did this all the way down to the Aberdovey valley where we needed to head inland, we dropped down to 1500' and began to fly along this valley, there was high ground both sides and low cloud overhead, however, as we could see a reasonably sized gap between the land and the clouds ahead we kept going. Situations like this do tend to focus your mind. Alan concentrated on the flying I concentrated on the navigation, neither of us could afford to get things wrong here. As we saw the ground flatten out we knew that we were near to our next planned stop at Shobdon. This gave us another excuse to sample airfield food, which is so much better than railway station food.

Suitably refreshed we took off and headed for our final stop of the day at Kemble where friend of Alans was going to look after us for the night. We saw the Severn Estuary a long time before we spotted Kemble, however, we did have to divert away from the airfield at one stage to avoid gliders operating in the area. Once at Kemble we negotiated some safe hangarage for the aircraft and took a taxi in to Cirencester. This short taxi trip cost more than it had cost us to get from Caernarfon, no wonder the driver was raving about how much he was earning. We relaxed for the evening knowing that tomorrow we going to try a 19 mile water crossing to Lundy Island, this was going to make us sweat.

We had taken the precaution of sending life jackets and immersion suits down to Alans friend at Cirencester, and now, with a large water crossing to face, we were loading them into the aircraft which we found nice and safe in the hangar at Kemble. The weather looked perfect for the days flying as we climbed in and taxied to take off, little wind and blue skies, (Alans aircraft is not troubled by the hot days as would be a flexwing microlight). As we climbed away from Kemble we found that a thin layer of cloud at 1000' was going to be a bit of a problem, it kept us below that level for longer than we would have liked, looks like there is no such thing as a perfect day. Our first stop was planned for a private strip at Wing farm in Wiltshire where a Thruster enthusiast works. This small journey took us near to the roman city of Bath which looks as splendid from the air as it does from the ground.

Wing Farm was reached in no time at all and we landed and had a time for a quick cup of tea before we had to leave and make our way west for fuel and Lundy Island.

We decided to refuel at a small airfield called Eaglescott. Our route to this took us near to Glastonbury where we could see the massive festival under way. We were still skimming along the underside of cloud here and this is the first time we heard the engine cough, we thought it was probably carburettor icing which quickly cleared and we felt safe to continue.

Eaglescott came up in front of us and we landed without the engine giving us any more cause for concern. Whilst refuelling we saw two microlights parked up, it seems the pilots were flying around the UK and had to stop due to bad weather, they had been stuck here for two weeks. This reminded us that we were flying using as much luck as judgement.

With the aircraft full of good quality aviation fuel and now wearing the life jackets we set off for Lundy Island. Heading across the land towards Bideford Bay we climbed up to 3000' and, crossing the coast, could just make out the tiny island 19 miles away. We had hoped that there would be plenty of boats about, these give us something to fly towards if the engine stops, there were hardly any, we could be on our own.

Like all the places we visited, we had phoned them first for permission to visit. The staff at Lundy Island had told us not to use the official runway but to land in the field behind the church. And as we got closer to the island we started to look for it. From about 2 miles we could see the church and the field, we needed now a closer look to see the best way to land and any dangers to be aware of. At first sight it was a big field, however, it was possible to see a line of darker grass crossing it, this indicated there was a fence, which reduced our landing area by 50%. One low pass over the field and we decided to land corner to corner. Coming in over the wall by the church, the walkers were amazed to see a plane landing. Not as amazed as us to realise that the field was on a serious slope and we were landing on a field coming up as quickly as we were going down. Lets just say the landing was firm.

We had hardly climbed out and we were surrounded by inquisitive tourists who asked all the usual questions. We paid the exorbitant £10 landing fee and then the fee for setting foot on the Island and went back to the field to see how we were going to get out. There was no way that we would be able to take off up hill, with all our equipment in the aircraft, we walked the field up and down, corner to corner both ways and decided, we could be stuck here. This is when we had to be creative. We walked other parts of the island and found a much better field, although it had a ditch across it, there was one part about 10' wide that was flat. We emptied everything from the aircraft, drained 15 litres of fuel into cans and carried it all across to the new field, I marked out each edge of the ditch with sleeping bags and asked Alan to land between the bags. With all the extra weight of equipment, and me, removed from the aircraft Alan was able to take off and then land as we planned, we quickly reloaded the aircraft and took off again before they came for another £10. As we took off and crossed over the cliff a young woman, topless sunbathing, got a bit of a shock.

We flew towards Hartland Point, only about 10 miles this time so much easier, and as we approached it we stayed about 1 mile offshore and flew along the coast line all the way down to St Ives, passing glorious beaches and coves all the way down, from St Ives we made our way inland and down to Lands End airport at St Just. This was a nice airport where the staff went out of their way to help us find accommodation, they even gave us a lift into town to the hotel. As for the Hotel, not too impressed, our sleep was disturbed by late night drunks and skateboarders just outside.

After a meagre hotel breakfast we asked about transport back to the airfield, no buses, no taxis, no offer of a lift, so we gathered our kit and walked the almost two miles. As we walked we watched the regular flights to the Scilly Isles (our next planned stop) taking off and climbing out, we were not happy to see that below 1000' they were disappearing into cloud.

When we arrived at the airport, hot after our walk we found that training flights had been cancelled due to the weather, a bank of low cloud was sitting over middle Cornwall and stretching out past the Scilly Isles, we could go but it would be 30 miles at 800', not something we fancied trying. So we waited, and waited, and waited. By lunchtime, and after numerous calls to the Scilly Isles we had to decide, what were we going to do?

Sitting in the pilots lounge at Lands End airport is a fairly nice way to spend your time, however, we really wanted to be on the Scilly Isles, the bank of cloud sitting over the middle of Cornwall and going out and covering the Scillies was stopping that happening. When we started our trip we thought that any problems we may encounter that were due to weather would be at the 'top end' of the country, here we were, at the warmer end and couldn't follow our plan any further.

We had already wasted half a day so it was time to kick in plan B. we had already agreed that if at any stage in the trip it looked as if the weather was going to be a problem we would aim to put ourselves two days ahead of our original plan. This meant we needed to get to Dunkeswell In Devon. All our other routes were drawn on the map and set up as routes in our GPS systems, I had to get ready for some seat of the pants navigating.

I noticed that there were a number of military bases around the southern Cornish coast, I wanted to find a way around them. There was also an area around Penzance to avoid. I built up a good mental picture of our route and we took off, headed for the coast and followed it back across the southern edge and to the east. Approaching the bay at Penzance near to the town of Mousehole I directed Alan to take us 2 miles offshore to cross the bay and be well clear of the Penzance airfield area. At the opposite coast it was necessary to cross back to the northern coast near Hayle and then cross central Cornwall to Truro and then back to the coast at Mevagissy. There was scattered cloud all along this route, once again we took ourselves above it and had a wonderful flight.

Flying just 1 mile offshore we followed the coast until we neared Plymouth, at this point we had to go back inland and onto Dartmoor, this was going to test my navigation! Climbing to 3000' for safety we headed onto Dartmoor on a bearing that I calculated from the map. It was strange to see that as we flew over Dartmoor we could see the southern, western and eastern edges of it at all times. Just before we reached HMP Dartmoor we turned east and picked up the coastline again at Dawlish. I recalled a family holiday here many years ago, little did I know then that I would one day be flying over it.

We were able to follow the coastline for the last time as far as Sidmouth where we had to turn to the north, passing the small airfield at Farway Common and the larger one at Exeter before we sighted Dunkeswell ahead. During WW2 this was the base for many American Airforce personnel. Dunkeswell is situated at 850' above sea level which meant that the winds was very lively as we landed.

This was the first time since we left Watnall that we had to put the tent up, it was a painless process and having pegged it down under the aircraft we set about a little local exploring. We found that the nearby village was a wonderful little place, it had an ancient looking church which apparently had to have its tower rebuilt due to the vibrations caused by the American aircraft landing during the war. The café at the airfield was open until 11pm but we were tired and climbed into our sleeping bags fairly early.

The next day, and as we were now 24 hours ahead of schedule we had nothing planned to do, so it was another day for wandering about. We found the very small museum dedicated to the American servicemen. Although very small it really did give a sense of the price paid by the men who worked there and many who died there. We read in the museum of a local pub where the servicemen spent many an off duty hour, we decided to visit it. Only a short walk back to the village we found the pub, it was awful, on entering a bell rang, just like a corner shop, we saw the backs of two televisions on tables between us and the bar, the barman and the three customers had racing results on teletext on one set and had Changing Rooms on another. Any plans to soak up any atmosphere were scuppered good and proper.

Alan was getting stir crazy by now and so we decided to go flying. We flew east to visit a small airstrip at Weston Zoyland, and then south, avoid the military base at Yeovilton and across to see if I could map read us to the Cerne Abbas Giant. Being on the side of a hill made it difficult to spot until we were right above it but find it we did and then flew back to Dunkeswell for another nights café food and camping.

The next morning we readied ourselves for the trip over to the Isle of Wight, we intended being there for a massive microlight gathering that was due to take place all over the weekend.

We flew across the northern side of the Bournemouth area and then down the eastern edge of it to cross the Solent. This short water crossing did not feel much of a problem to us, we had only recently flown 19 miles to Lundy Island after all.

We flew over the Isle of Wight just inland of the Needles and then flew along its southern coast to our destination at Sandown. On arrival we found that about 12 machines were ahead of us. Before the weekend was over, over 300 would fly in, all shapes and sizes.

We managed to secure a place on a nearby camp site for our tent, this gave us clean toilets and showers. On the Friday and Saturday evenings all the pilots gathered around the hangars and swapped stories as the beer flowed. We were also treated to a presentation by Brian Milton, who flew a flexwing microlight all the way around the world only a couple of years ago.

The plan was that many of us were going to fly into France on the Monday, however, as Sunday morning dawned it was clear that if anyone wanted to go to France they had to go now, and there was no clear sign of when it would be safe to come back. This situation did not really appeal and so, on the Sunday, 8 days after we left Watnall we decided to head for home. Again I would have to map read.

Setting off we headed back across the Solent and up the side of the Southampton zone and then overhead Popham where we could land and rest or refuel if needed by then, we felt fine and we still had plenty of petrol so we elected to keep going, and keep going we did. We passed the western side of Oxford and then headed north east past Leicester and Nottingham and finally turned back towards our home base, We had Watnall in sight. Things are not over until you are on the ground and the aircraft has been put away and we had a very strong cross wind to contend with as we landed. Safely down we could finally relax a little. We had beaten the weather more than it had beaten us, we had been to places in the same trip that others take years to get around to, and we had had fun.

Why do I fly microlights, more to the point, why don't you?