Family Vacation to PWM

Time for a little story about our family vacation flying the friendly skies. It was a lot of fun having the family in the air with me on this trip. To sit back and watch as they went through security, carried their backpacks, found their seats - and overall traveled quite well. No major delays (thank you United) - although Austin was hoping for a delay on the way home so he didn't have to go back to school so soon, or was it to spend more time in the Red Carpet Club (RCC)?

We did get to see the sunrise leaving RDD heading to SFO. The second shot below is the sun reflecting on Shelby's face - so bright like an angel.

A quick stop at the RCC in SFO for a bathroom break and some snack (bananas and coffee) and off to our next gate. And surprise, an upgrade to Economy Plus for the entire Smith family. Who needs windows when you have your own personal entertainment system? I sat in a middle aisle seat, but it was priceless to get this picture.

So from SFO to IAD, then quickly to a plane bound for PWM, but not before taking another quick break in the RCC for some afternoon snacks (cheese and crackers - and coffee for me). We arrived in PWM with no delays - and got an upgrade on our rental car to a fuel efficient Chevy Tahoe. You are probably thinking to yourself, how can an SUV be fuel efficient? Me too, although we did get about 25-30 MPG on the highway thanks to modern technology.

Our trip was fabulous - a time to visit my Uncle Frank and Aunt Dale that have lived in Maine for probably 30 years. They are only a few blocks from the Atlantic Ocean, so I thought I would throw in an iconic lighthouse picture for my readers - the Portland Head Lighthouse - commissioned by President George Washington during his time in office.

We also were able to visit Boston and Salem, MA, and Acadia National Park in Maine - home of Cadillac Mountain, the highest mountain on the East "Coast" of the US. Many say the sun rises first in the United States at the top of this peak, but that all depends on what time of year and the tilt of the Earth's axis. Nonetheless, here is a picture of the family high atop Cadillac Mountain elev. 1532'.

Many other highlights of our trip, but this is a blog about air travel, so I will get on with the stuff related to air and airports. But before that, one priceless picture of Austin and Shelby catching an Atlantic Ocean wave - water temps had to be in the high 40s or very low 50s.

PWM to ORD was nice - we actually flew over Canada where it dips down into the Great Lakes region. We did get in the back of the plane from ORD to SFO - I picked those seats so the kids could get windows with views that were not blocked by the wing. Here is the happy family.

 And here is the view to the front of the plane from my seat.

And as for the view - well, we flew right over Half Dome and Yosemite National Park as we were on our approach to SFO.

And at the RCC in SFO -

And to welcome us home - much like as we left, we got a terrific sunset West Coast style flying into RDD.

So the family trip of 2011 was a success. We had a great time on the East Coast and didn't suffer any ill affects of Hurricane Irene.