The Liberty Gazette
November 10, 2020
Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely
Linda: With a beautiful weekend, we had plenty of choices where we could go, what we could do. We could fly somewhere we haven’t been yet with the bikes. We could practice approaches (legal requirements to maintain instrument currency require a minimum of six approaches every six months, plus holding, intercepting, and tracking). Or, we could go sight-seeing. That was the winning decision a couple of Saturdays ago when it was Mike’s turn in the left seat. “Let’s just fly around,” he said (some call it, ‘JFA’). “I think I’ll give you an air tour.” Sounded good to me. No pressure to be anywhere, just up in the sky, looking around with a different perspective.
Mike: I had just finished a mind-numbing and intense two-week, six-day-a-week work schedule. I needed to relax, and the Elyminator beckoned. I wanted to soar above the countryside and enjoy whatever scenes floated into view, my eyes like a camera lens, my mind storing the film I can replay whenever I want.
Linda: We stayed local, no more than 60 miles around. Over Liberty, we peered down on the high school, with a great view of the baseball diamond, the track, and the tennis courts. Over Dayton, one of the most obvious eye-catchers is the ginormous train parking area.
The construction of 99 in progress was also an attraction worthy of our examination. Lots of it is carved out in the dirt, some bridges already poured, and you can easily see its footprint from the air.
Mike: Lazily flying along the shore, we were spotting and telling tales of historical landmarks along the ship channels and intercoastal waterway. I made a couple slow turns over Fort Travis Park, checking out the circular foundations where the gun turrets were mounted, and the bunkers. A great place for a picnic. Viewing historical places from aloft adds depth to stories—like having a living, breathing map laid out in front of us.
Linda: Probably one of my favorite sights on Mike’s tour was the Navy’s WWII blimp facility south of Hitchcock. Brought back memories growing up in Indianapolis where every May, the Goodyear blimp would arrive and hover over the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which was near our house. Because the blimp would appear before opening day, it was always a beautiful sign of the fun days to come. There’s nothing like Indy in May. And flying a blimp would be cool. So would sailing. Believe it or not, I have never been sailing.
Here and there, lovely sails dotted Galveston Bay, seemingly gently meandering, although I know there is work involved. Others gathered in tight groups, clearly students of a sailing school. I suppose if I’m drawn to flying something as slow as a blimp, maybe I would enjoy sailing, too. That’s actually a new thought for me, the one from Indy who loves high speed.
Mike: This is kind of a gypsy trip in microcosm, going no place, with no need to get there fast, just enjoying the ride.
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