SACRAMENTO - SAC or SMF

on the 9th we are flying into the Sacramento, California area, I havn't
made up my mind which airport to use, SAC or SMF.
Anyone here familiar with the area and is either better then the other
for GA ?
I am leaning towards SAC because of the cross runways and looks to be a
good GA airport.

KSAC is the preferred GA airport over KSMF. GA certainly can use
KSMF, but KSAC is much better set up for GA traffic. As for the cross
runways (6!) frankly I find it confusing. Many taxiways cross runways
and it's easy to make a mistake. I almost always ask for a
progressive taxi because I don't use the airport often enough to get
familiar with it.

Of course, depending on where your final destination is and what your
ground transport needs are, you might prefer other, smaller GA airports.

Jeff writes:

on the 9th we are flying into the Sacramento, California area, I havn't
made up my mind which airport to use, SAC or SMF.
Anyone here familiar with the area and is either better then the other
for GA ?
I am leaning towards SAC because of the cross runways and looks to be a
good GA airport.

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Bob Fry wrote:
KSAC is the preferred GA airport over KSMF. GA certainly can use
KSMF, but KSAC is much better set up for GA traffic. As for the cross
runways (6!) frankly I find it confusing. Many taxiways cross runways
and it's easy to make a mistake. I almost always ask for a
progressive taxi because I don't use the airport often enough to get
familiar with it.

Of course, depending on where your final destination is and what your
ground transport needs are, you might prefer other, smaller GA airports.


KSAC is definitely the GA airport to go to in the Sacramento
area. However, depending on what you may be doing there, also consider
KMHR (Mather Field). It's a bit further out (10DME, SAC R-040), and is
a much quieter field. It's mainly used for cargo and some business. But
when in doubt in the Sacramento area, SAC is the place to go for GA
aircraft.

BL.
- --
Brad Littlejohn | Email:
Unix Systems Administrator, |
Web + NewsMaster, BOFH.. Smeghead! | http://www.sbcglobal.net/~tyketto
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thanks for the input, we are staying in the area for a couple of days, rental
car and staying at the Sheraton Grand Sacramento.
We are only comming down to see a horse we bought up in Lincoln (paid for it,
just havn't seen it yet), no nice hotels in Lincoln is why I am not flying
into there (at least thats what my map program says).

Maybe I will get to see Arnold while in the area
(have to find something to do besides looking at the dang horse for 2 days,
no matter what the wife says)


Bob Fry wrote:

KSAC is the preferred GA airport over KSMF. GA certainly can use
KSMF, but KSAC is much better set up for GA traffic. As for the cross
runways (6!) frankly I find it confusing. Many taxiways cross runways
and it's easy to make a mistake. I almost always ask for a
progressive taxi because I don't use the airport often enough to get
familiar with it.

Of course, depending on where your final destination is and what your
ground transport needs are, you might prefer other, smaller GA airports.

Jeff writes:

on the 9th we are flying into the Sacramento, California area, I havn't
made up my mind which airport to use, SAC or SMF.
Anyone here familiar with the area and is either better then the other
for GA ?
I am leaning towards SAC because of the cross runways and looks to be a
good GA airport.

Jeff... there is an excellent Rail Museum along the water front in the down
town area. Early April may be to early for rafting the American River from
Folsom Dam to down town. Drive up to Williams, short drive north on I-5 and
check out the glider operation. If you are going to Lincoln, drive up to
Grass Valley, there used to be an excellent tour through a mine in the area,
I forget the details.

BT

"Jeff" wrote in message
...
thanks for the input, we are staying in the area for a couple of days,
rental
car and staying at the Sheraton Grand Sacramento.
We are only comming down to see a horse we bought up in Lincoln (paid for
it,
just havn't seen it yet), no nice hotels in Lincoln is why I am not flying
into there (at least thats what my map program says).

Maybe I will get to see Arnold while in the area
(have to find something to do besides looking at the dang horse for 2
days,
no matter what the wife says)


Bob Fry wrote:

KSAC is the preferred GA airport over KSMF. GA certainly can use
KSMF, but KSAC is much better set up for GA traffic. As for the cross
runways (6!) frankly I find it confusing. Many taxiways cross runways
and it's easy to make a mistake. I almost always ask for a
progressive taxi because I don't use the airport often enough to get
familiar with it.

Of course, depending on where your final destination is and what your
ground transport needs are, you might prefer other, smaller GA airports.

Jeff writes:

on the 9th we are flying into the Sacramento, California area, I
havn't
made up my mind which airport to use, SAC or SMF.
Anyone here familiar with the area and is either better then the other
for GA ?
I am leaning towards SAC because of the cross runways and looks to be
a
good GA airport.

Jeff...

SAC is IN downtown, SMF is out in the tules. Depending on how you plan on
getting around, SAC is a much cheaper cab ride to the Sheraton Grand.

The Sheraton is only a block or two away from the State Capitol. Touring that
building is half a day in and of itself. The cafeteria in the basement is
pretty, but the cafeteria upstairs (4th floor, as I recall) is where the
legislators hang out AND the food upstairs is better. You might see Arnold as
he doesn't seem to just stay in his office holed up, but gets out and gladhands
the public every now and again. Every Governor from #1 to Gray has their
portrait painted and hanging on the walls. You've GOTTA see Jerry Brown's
portrait up on the 3rd floor.

After that, as somebody else mentioned, the Railroad Museum is a must. The RRM
is in "old town" about five blocks from the Capitol. There are a couple of
riverboats tied up at the pier that are worth exploring. Some of the best food
in Sacramento is in old town.

As for Grass Valley, the old Empire Mine is a State Park where you can wander
the grounds all day if you wish; bring a picnic lunch. The sandwiches at the
Golden Empire Market (half a mile from the mine on the corner of Empire and
South Auburn) are very inexpensive and the best in town. If you want "local
color" there are a half-dozen places that sell Cornish pasties.

If you want a mine TOUR, I think the Sixteen-To-One up in Allegheney is still
giving down-deep-in-the-mine tours. Or, if you want to take your chances, I'll
be glad to loan you a couple of gold pans and give you directions to Keleher
State Park up in Washington, which is the best free gold panning site on the
South Fork of the Yuba. CAUTION -- the snowmelt at this time of the year has
the river flowing hard. It is dangerous to do more than wade out a few feet.
We lose two or three to drowning in April and May every year. On the other
hand, the heavy flow washes the gold so that it is easier to get to at this time
of the year, but the water is cold. The water is DAMNED cold.

At a banquet a few years ago, Chuck Yeager related a story about a fishing buddy
and he that were at a dinner where a nosy lady was sitting between them. They
were talking about the fishing up on the South Fork and the lady kept butting
in. The talk turned to how cold the water was this time of the year, and the
lady made some small talk about how cold WAS the water? Yeager came back that
the water was so cold it would have made her nipples stand up like a popped
circuit breaker and that was the LAST thing she said all night.

You need more?

Jim




"BTIZ"
shared these priceless pearls of wisdom:

-Jeff... there is an excellent Rail Museum along the water front in the down
-town area. Early April may be to early for rafting the American River from
-Folsom Dam to down town. Drive up to Williams, short drive north on I-5 and
-check out the glider operation. If you are going to Lincoln, drive up to
-Grass Valley, there used to be an excellent tour through a mine in the area,
-I forget the details.
-
-BT
-
-"Jeff" wrote in message
...
- thanks for the input, we are staying in the area for a couple of days,
-rental
- car and staying at the Sheraton Grand Sacramento.
- We are only comming down to see a horse we bought up in Lincoln (paid for
-it,
- just havn't seen it yet), no nice hotels in Lincoln is why I am not flying
- into there (at least thats what my map program says).
-
- Maybe I will get to see Arnold while in the area
- (have to find something to do besides looking at the dang horse for 2
-days,
- no matter what the wife says)
-
-
- Bob Fry wrote:
-
- KSAC is the preferred GA airport over KSMF. GA certainly can use
- KSMF, but KSAC is much better set up for GA traffic. As for the cross
- runways (6!) frankly I find it confusing. Many taxiways cross runways
- and it's easy to make a mistake. I almost always ask for a
- progressive taxi because I don't use the airport often enough to get
- familiar with it.
-
- Of course, depending on where your final destination is and what your
- ground transport needs are, you might prefer other, smaller GA airports.
-
- Jeff writes:
-
- on the 9th we are flying into the Sacramento, California area, I
-havn't
- made up my mind which airport to use, SAC or SMF.
- Anyone here familiar with the area and is either better then the other
- for GA ?
- I am leaning towards SAC because of the cross runways and looks to be
-a
- good GA airport.
-
-

Jim Weir (A&P/IA, CFI, & other good alphabet soup)
VP Eng RST Pres. Cyberchapter EAA Tech. Counselor
http://www.rst-engr.com

Hi Jeff. I fly out of Lincoln. Nice little airport but ya, no
hotels/rental cars. SAC (or "Sacramento Executive) is probably the best bet
if you're staying at the Sheraton in down town Sacramento. It can be a busy
place but I've never had any problems getting in/out of there. Make sure
you have an airport diagram as other folks have mentioned, it can be a tad
confusing the first time. Transient parking is near the base of the tower.

Enjoy your stay here in the Sacramento area.

--
Jack Allison
PP-ASEL

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth
with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there
you will always long to return"
- Leonardo Da Vinci

(Remove the obvious from address to reply via e-mail)

"Jack Allison" wrote in message
...
Hi Jeff. I fly out of Lincoln. Nice little airport but ya, no
hotels/rental cars. SAC (or "Sacramento Executive) is probably the best
bet
if you're staying at the Sheraton in down town Sacramento. It can be a
busy
place but I've never had any problems getting in/out of there. Make sure
you have an airport diagram as other folks have mentioned, it can be a tad
confusing the first time.

Also for whatever reason the tower folks are notoriously short-tempered.
Expect them to yell at you if you get anything even slightly wrong, and
expect them to go out of their way to find something you've done wrong.
Once when I was there they mishead a readback and yelled at me for
getting it wrong. Apparently this kind of thing is quite normal there.

John

Really the only reason to go into SMF is if you need a rental car at a
convient time. SAC can arrange to have cars but its a 9-5 M-F thing,
SMF has cars 24x7. SAC is very GA friendly. SMF will have a police
officer waiting to talk to you when you shutdown (they need name/N
number). SMF is actually not bad for GA, they have their own GA area
and all, they're just not used to too much of it. Fuel can be tough
because you are WAY down on the priority list for the truck. The other
problem is that SMF is out in the middle of nowhere.
I've been vectored all the way to Marysville waiting for my slot on
the ILS at SMF too, the airline guys certainly seem to get priority.

Practice approaches are also discouraged at SMF. They usually require
full stop landings to prevent us from usnig SMF for instrument
training. SAC is very, very friendly toward training and often has 3
or 4 planes on the ILS on a busy, clear summer weekend.

-Robert, CFI


Jeff wrote in message ...
on the 9th we are flying into the Sacramento, California area, I havn't
made up my mind which airport to use, SAC or SMF.
Anyone here familiar with the area and is either better then the other
for GA ?
I am leaning towards SAC because of the cross runways and looks to be a
good GA airport.

"John Harper" wrote in message news:1081182853.506948@sj-nntpcache-5...
"Jack Allison" wrote in message
...
Hi Jeff. I fly out of Lincoln. Nice little airport but ya, no
hotels/rental cars. SAC (or "Sacramento Executive) is probably the best
bet
if you're staying at the Sheraton in down town Sacramento. It can be a
busy
place but I've never had any problems getting in/out of there. Make sure
you have an airport diagram as other folks have mentioned, it can be a tad
confusing the first time.

Also for whatever reason the tower folks are notoriously short-tempered.
Expect them to yell at you if you get anything even slightly wrong, and
expect them to go out of their way to find something you've done wrong.
Once when I was there they mishead a readback and yelled at me for
getting it wrong. Apparently this kind of thing is quite normal there.

John

I used to instruct there 20 years ago. It seems like it was easy for
new guys to mix up rwy 20 with rwy 2. This and getting lost on the
ground lead to a lot of yelling by the tower as I recall. Funny, some
things never change. Took my wife up into the tower a few years ago.
We're chatting with this nice young controller and this annal alpha
hotel runs up into the cab and shouts: "YOU'RE STANDING IN MY SPOT!"
The other guy wasn't even surprised. He'd seen this yelling tradition
before.

pacplyer