Color Along the Wenatchee River

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We made a trip across the Cascades in October to see what sort of colors there were in the trees.  Choosing when to go is tricky because the timing of the color in the mountains isn’t the same as it is near us.  Things were very pretty as we headed across Steven’s Pass.  One the run down to Leavenworth, the road is tucked up against the banks of the Wenatchee River.  There are a few places on the otherwise narrow road where you can pull off.  The colors were pretty intense in parts providing a focus for the eye of the viewer of the photos.

Goodbye Alitalia

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Airlines come and go but there are some that seem immortal, despite the fact that they really should have died.  Alitalia was one such airline.  It had gone through financial crisis after financial crisis.  All sorts of EU rules were broken with the government propping the airline up and then they got support from another airline which probably regretted it very quickly.  It now seems that they have finally gone.  The failure of an airline is obviously traumatic for the people that work for it and I am genuinely sorry for them.  However, Alitalia really needed to go.  There is a new airline in Italy and they have bought the rights to the name.  They paid less than half of the minimum bid that the people selling the rights said they would take.  It looks like it was just to stop someone else using the name but we shall see.  Let’s hope ITA is a better run operation.

Of All Of These, One Is My Favorite

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The Avants event at Chateau Ste. Michelle had some very high end hypercars on display.  A Ferrari Enzo or a La Ferrari might seem like they are the best.  How about a McLaren Senna?  Seems like the best huh?  That might be true but the one next to them was the one I really was taken with.  I am not a big Porsche fan.  I don’t have a problem with Porsches but I have never been taken with them in the way some have.  However, I make an exception for the Carrera GT.  That is a car that seems to be special and the end of an era of car types.  I recall seeing one on the streets in Chicago and being blown away.  Consequently, when I saw this one next to the more recent high end creations, I was really excited.  It is a great looking car and something more traditional in the way it is designed.  It was also super expensive when it was new.  Of course, if you want one now, it is even more expensive!

A First Global 6500 For Me (and Then Another)

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Bombardier’s Global 6000 has been a very successful jet for them.  With the arrival of the Global 7500 at the top of their line, the next question was what to do with the 5000 and 6000.  They got an upgrade put together which has moved them up a little.  Some aero tweaks, an interior upgrade and the new Rolls Royce Pearl engines resulted in the new models.  Visually, I wouldn’t know how to tell the old from the new but at least flight tracking information lets you know which is which.

My first encounter with one was at Boeing Field.  A Spanish registered 6500 was parked over at Modern and it departed while I was there.  Since it is a large jet, it has to cross over to our side of the runway to taxi for departure.  The food news was that it went full length rather than departing from the intersection.  This provided a good opportunity to shoot it close up.  Then it headed off.  Despite the range, I think it was only going to Arizona so it wasn’t taxing the capabilities of the jet.

It wasn’t long before I got a second 6500.  Again, Boeing Field was the venue but, this time, it was arriving rather than departing so I was able to get it in the air.  The conditions weren’t quite as nice as for the first encounter but it was still fine.  I like the original Global Express, liked it when it became the Global 6000 and I still like it now.  It might have been around in these various forms for a while but it is still an elegant looking jet.  Where is my checkbook…

Island Ferry Terminals

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The San Juan Islands were our escape a couple of times during the limits on travel that COVID provided.  Getting to the islands involves a ferry trip and I will always enjoy that.  One of the things that I find interesting about the ferry terminals on the islands is how simple they are.  When we lived in the UK, the ferries were constantly expanding in their usage and the terminals were all getting upgraded to accommodate more vehicles.  They also had shops and food outlets.

The San Juans are far lower key.  The terminals are often in remote locations (accepting that the islands are generally pretty remote anyway) and they are tucked away looking far more like part of the coastline.  As we travel on the ferries, we get to see some that we stop at and others we pass.  Here are a few of the ones I have photographed from the water.

WH004 Back at Paine Field

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The 777X program is hardly zipping along.  The four test aircraft have been in use for a while now but the certification is not due until the end of 2023.  After being built at Everett, the test jets all headed to Boeing Field.  However, the fourth test aircraft, WH004, recently went back to Everett.  I’m not sure why but it did a bit of flying out of there.  One evening, I popped up to get a photo or two when it was returning.  Conditions were ideal but a white jet will always have a bit of light on the airframe.

Everett Waterfront

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I have seen a few articles recently about new developments along the waterfront in Everett.  Apartment buildings have been going up along with hotels and restaurants.  I decided to swing by one afternoon to have a look around.  This development is all north of the navy base and around the marina.  It was nice enough and I imagine it will continue to expand over time.  The buildings are much what you might expect.  However, I did get to see other things that I had not gone to before.  There is an old building out near the water which is nicely restored.  It appears to be open at certain times but wasn’t while I was there.  Any locals know the history?

Rainbows Over Paine Field

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A cloudy/rainy day in the Northwest can also coincide with a nicer evening.  This can bring some nice dark and stormy backgrounds for shots of planes with good light.  It does also mean that the background can have rain falling when the sun is out and that means rainbows.  The rain at Everett was a bit localized so we didn’t get a full rainbow.  Instead, I could see the two ends at the ground but no rainbow in between.  However, the one end was sitting right over Boeing’s ramp and it looked rather appealing.  Not sure whether the KC-46 at the end of the rainbow is a pot of gold, though.

The Supercar That Kind Of Wasn’t

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One of the more interesting vehicles (among a ton of interesting vehicles) at the Avants event in Woodinville was a Jaguar XJ220.  This was something that was developed in the early 90s and was supposed to be a big impact in the super car world.  Intended to get to about 200mph (which it almost did), it was a huge vehicle with a twin turbocharged V6 engine (not the V12 which was originally considered).  It was long, wide and very fast.  It was also very expensive costing something like GBP400k at the time.

Unfortunately for it, the super car market took a bit of a dive at that time with the economy not being great.  Also, McLaren introduced the F1 which was fast and light.  (It also did not seem terribly well because of the same market conditions but did turn a small profit when the racing versions were sold.)  Production of the XJ220 never reached the intended numbers and the unsold vehicles at the end of the line ultimately were sold for some pretty low prices.  It just didn’t really arrive at the right time.

It is a hell of a car to see in person.  It is very big.  The width of the vehicle head on is impressive but the length of it is something else.  It also seems quite unusual compared to more modern cars in that the wheels are a long way in from each end of the car.  The wheels themselves are strange too with quite a small wheel compared to the tire unlike a modern super car with low profile tires.  It’s a shame that it never really had the impact that was intended but it was cool to see one out on display.

Odd P-8 Fin at BFI

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While waiting for an arriving 777X, I looked back across Boeing Field at the Boeing military ramp.  They had a bunch of P-8s on the ramp at that time but one seemed a bit odd.  First, it didn’t have the fin cap attached.  I am not sure what might be the reason for removing it.  Also, something about the paint on the fin was odd.  It looked like someone was in the process of repainting it.  Since it was on their ramp and the rest of the airframe was obscured, I couldn’t see which airframe it was or which customer it was destined for so no idea what the story might be.  Anyone with any suggestions?