Thanks @boscomantico for yet another great trip report. It’s a good idea to look back once in a while and remember flight adventures in the past and share these. It made me think of a similar trip, in 2016.
The US is such a wonderful place to fly. The GA infrastructure and culture is just superb, in spite of local people moaning about the FAA and such like 
For those who have not flown there yet, I’d really recommend to go there once this nasty Virus blows over. Although the East and South East is fun, nothing beats the West. Scenery so different from any European landscape! And, assuming that the POTUS will concede one day, Arizona now is a safe place for any of us Europeans who consider themselves democrats/liberals/radical left or whatever other label.
I got lucky when a good friend asked me to come over and do some serious flying. Like for Bosco, it started in Phoenix, and we ended up going to various of the same places that he did.
After breakfast on day one, time to get the toys out of his hangar of this lovely home at an airpark on the edge of ‘civilisation’ and the desert.
But guess what? The neighbour hangar also opened up, and I was taken for a wake-up ride in a very special machine. What a way to start the day and to shake off a jet lag..
We decided to first go west to the LA area. Needed to get up a bit, so some oxygen would make sense:
Did an intermediate fuel stop. At midday in mid July things heat up. When I opened the door it felt like someone pointing a hairdryer straight in my face.
So I said to the refueller: “pretty hot up here sir!” He looked at me with an expression of ’here’s another one of these East Coast wussies or wherever this gringo is from’ and polity said: “Naahh, not yet..”
Arriving over the urban sea of the LA basin:
On final to Santa Monica airport:
I should have contacted @172driver for a coffee, but it only occurred to me later. Sorry, next time!
Time to go east. My iPhone says this was Fredonia. What a mix of wonderful colors, with of course the most magnificent one that fat black freshly asphalted runway..
No sense repeating Bosco’s great pics of the Grand Canyon, but here’s a few of the airport there.
Everything is big in the US. They even use an Airbus for sightseeing:
Another friend had joined for this portion of the trip. Ahh, nothing like a dedicated crew to fly me around..
Visited Sedona and Page, like Bosco. And did a morning flight to Monument Valley. Incredible.. It’s hard to gauge the size of these rocks and mountains. It helps to have a reference of a road of some houses.
Time to head home, on short final:
aart wrote:
My iPhone says this was Fredonia. What a mix of wonderful colors, with of course the most magnificent one that fat black freshly asphalted runway..
Photo taken in Arizona, or on the border, with view into Utah. Vantage point is just south of Kanab airport, looking north to Kanab UT itself, north of Fredonia AZ (not visible).
Sightseeing plane looks like a Twin Otter?
Nice photos!
Yes, a Twin Otter, Airbus was a bit tongue-in-cheek of course
@bosco, thank you for this fine report and those great pictures. I´m still member at PlusOneFlyers, San Diego, and this report reminds me how badly I want to return to the Western US to do more fun flying. When these crazy times are over and traveling will be allowed again I´m going to be there as soon as I´ve got a week off work.
Thanks Bosco for taking the time and the good pictures as usual.
I could make a report from my US flying trip but I am on another project for EuroGA… stay tuned 
(Aart, that looks like a systemicaly-racist and planet-wrecking trip to me )
I showed my German wife these photos, and now she wants to go to southern Utah in the spring My goal would be to get her to fly with me to Kanab as per the photo from @aart or Page AZ but motion sickness is always lurking in the background for her, so we’ll see.
There’s a private airport in Monument Valley (UT25) and I believe I’ve heard of people landing there, but I can’t remember the details… something to check out.
I think the time for a few day and weekend trips is drawing near…
@Silvaire, here is what you’re looking for wrt the strip in Monument Valley: https://gouldings.com/amenities/airstrip/
I thought of going there a couple of years ago, but for one reason or another ended up not doing it. The whole area is breathtakingly beautiful to fly over.
I stayed in Gouldings Lodge c. 1990!
Interesting info, thanks for that.
