The Second Leg

It is now 15:45 and time to go on. I take off at 16:00 and head towards Las Vegas New Mexico. I am flying at 4500 ft just 1000 ft above the terrain. I have flight following handing me off to Denver. I tell them I am going to check the weather and will be off frequency for several minutes. Flight service says the weather is still bad around Las Vegas. I decide to go for LAA Lamar, Colorado. This takes me 2.9 hr. I make the same trike landing and I do not know why. I recover ok. I taxi up to the ramp, fill up with gas, tie down and head for town and a hotel room. It is after 6:00 PM and maybe a good thing I did not continue.

Day Two

Well, I get up early. I now know I have the problem of not having a flush toilet on board solved. All I have to do is go to the bathroom prior to leaving and not drink anything an hour before that. So - I make coffee in the room and drink at least 3 cups while I am getting ready. I go down to breakfast and have juice, milk, milk on my cereal and more coffee. After breakfast I go once more. I am all packed and ready to go. I am off to the airport and ready to leave by 8:00 am. I leave LAA. and head for LVS, Las Vegas New Mexico. My plan is to skirt the mountains by flying south of Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Before I get to Las Vegas, I have to go. Why? Well, I am glad I have my handy jug stashed under my seat. Finally, I have to use it. Well - that's over. I will empty it when I land. I fly on. I pass over Las Vegas and it looks like long wide runways. I fly on to a point about 50 miles south where I plan to make a turn to the west and skirt below Santa Fe. I am now flying about 9500 ft MSL. Good clearance over the terrain. It is now about 9:30 and I have to go again. Hmm - The pot is full. I decide that I have to empty it overboard. (It will evaporate before it hits the ground.) So I open the right side window and it's done. (I do have a flush toilet!) I turn the corner and head up the valley, west of Santa Fe towards Durango. Flying by 11000 ft peaks but lots of clearance. Again I have to go and it is not even 11:00. Same procedures as before, I don't even need a checklist.

Now I am comfortable. I am about to make my approach to Durango. I call up the ASOS for La Plata, Durango's other airport. Wind is from the southwest at about 7. Not bad. I fly over the last mountain range and see the valley before me. I can see the main airport but cannot see Animas Air Park. I keep looking - it should be straight ahead. I see a long straight something that looks like a gravel runway. That's not it. Finally I see the airport ahead. The runway is perched up high with a south end that drops off into the valley. I decide with the wind and the runway layout that I will land on 19 that way I can fly a downwind and look for the windsock. I have been flying for 3.5 hours.

The Approach

I call up and announce my intensions. Some one replies that I can use 01. I ask if that is the correct runway and the voice says either one - my choice. I am going to use 19. I fly the downwind at pattern altitude. I did not see the windsock. My first approach is too high and at 100 ft. I decide to go around. My next approach is better, but I don't feel well about it. I decide I can do better and that I will go around again.

The Landing (really the accident)

Finally, I am right on the money, right altitude, and right airspeed on final approach. I am going to make this one. I land, on the mains, in the same trike attitude, not a 3-point and not a wheel landing. I cannot believe how fast I am going. The ground is racing by as I run downhill and maybe even downwind. The runway is very narrow, 50 ft (actually 46, I measured) while I am used to 100 ft wide runways and open grass on each side. When I approach the turn in to airport parking, I am speeding and moving towards the edge of the runway. I am not sure where the tail wheel is at this time. May still be in the air. I realize that I am off the runway with the right wheel. I can't, or don't, get the plane turned back on to the runway. The runway lip is at least a 6 inch drop in some places. Now I am completely off the runway and still moving to the right. Still going fast through the grass. I see a fence coming near as I plow through the brush. I have to get out of here. I stomp on the left rudder and the plane starts to move toward the runway through heavy brush almost up to the wing .
At least I am not heading for the fence anymore. I am coming up to the runway. I get the left main on the runway. I try to get the right wheel on but I start to skid and turn to the right. I can't stop it but at least I am not going as fast as before. All that grass and brush slowed me down. The plane turns to the right and the left main goes back into the ditch with the right main. The tail wheel must now be on the runway. The main gear is in the ditch about 18 inches below the runway and I am skidding sideways. Everything is now in slow motion. I am pressed against the door and it pops open. My charts are tossed out the left side and then my flight bag from the back seat goes out also. I think, "there go the charts".
The plane begins to tip up on the right side while the left wing is heading for the ground. Slowly the plane tips up until the left wing tip hits the ground. Everything stops - time, movement, everything - including my breathing. I wait. Then slowly the right wing begins to come down and the left wing up. The plane settles slowly onto the wheels. All is stopped. I am ok. I start to breath again. The first thing I think about is the prop. Did it strike the ground? I don't think so. Finally I un-strap myself and get out. The plane is perpendicular to the runway, with the mains in the ditch about 18 inches below the runway and the tail wheel is on the runway. My maps are strewn on the ground and my flight bag is about 5 feet away. The engine is stopped but I do not know how. I walk around to the front to check the prop. It seems to be ok. I am OK.

People come running down the runway to help. (Maybe someone shut the engine off?) We are all looking over the plane. Damaged, but it doesn't seem too bad. I do not know what happened. This part is all a blur. People pull the plane back onto the runway and start taking it to the parking area. I walk along.

To Part Three