Niagara Falls to Dearborn, MI questions!

When you planning to do this?

We leave for Missouri on Friday.

God only knows where we'll end up after that. Flying the country VFR isn't
a vacation -- it's an adventure! Thus, after the first day or three, our
flight plan becomes somewhat more fictionalized...

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Or, if you have a choice, go on a weekday. The lines on the weekends
are huge.

From nation-wide experience, we won't even consider doing a theme park on a
weekend. It's just not worth the hassle.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I seriously consider KVLL or 1D2 instead of DET.

Alternately, you could try landing at the old Ford Airport, adjacent to
Greenfield Village / Henry Ford Museum:

http://www.airfields-freeman.com/MI/...t_NW.html#ford

Brien K. Meehan wrote:
Alternately, you could try landing at the old Ford Airport, adjacent to
Greenfield Village / Henry Ford Museum:

Now that I've posted that, I realize that you might have a special
interest in The Dearborn Inn, across the street from the old airport
(now a test track), and within a mile of Greenfield Village. It was
the world's first airport hotel.

On 2006-06-12, Jay Honeck wrote:
Yeah, $15 whole Canadian dollars.

In the end, it won't hurt Chicago (or Canada) financially if we don't land
there, but at least I won't feel like I'm contributing to the *******s who
are trying to kill GA.

Come on, it will cost you $25 for the US Customs sticker for Atlas just
to get back in the country. The CAN$15 ATC fee is nothing![*]
[*] Well, it's more now than it was last time I was there -- the US$ is
pretty low!

--
Ben Jackson

http://www.ben.com/

Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe wrote:
Grosse Ile (former Naval Air Station) is another option. There will be a big
RC Jet thing there July 13-16. http://www.grosseileairport.com/

Grosse Ile is historically significant, and is cool to visit (or at
least fly over). The old circular concrete landing area can still be
seen (but not used).

.... but Grosse Ile is a little awkward to get to/from on the ground
(there are only two bridges connecting the island to the mainland that
get quite busy), and nice places to stay and eat aren't plentiful.

When you're in the pattern at Oakland Troy (VLL) or Canton Plymouth
Mettetal (1D2), you can't spit out the window without hitting a
restaurant or hotel. Plus, getting to Dearborn is essentially a
straight shot down the Southfield Fwy or Michigan Avenue, respectively.

Jay Honeck wrote:
Our flight plan for our upcoming vacation is slowly coming together -- and
one of the legs on this 1500 mile excursion is going to take us from Niagara
Falls, NY (IAG) to Dearborn, MI (actually Detroit City, DET). This is
going to take us over Canada -- something we've never done before.

Questions:

1. We want to take the kids to the Henry Ford Museum, in Dearborn. It
appears that Detroit City Airport (DET) is the nearest airport to Dearborn.
Anyone landed there? Is it a pit? Parking fees? Is there a better choice?
Is Willow Run (the old B-24 bomber base) still open?

2. I know this was recently covered, but...when we over-fly Canada VFR, do
we have to pay them a fee? Is flying along the northern (Canadian) shore of
Lake Erie as cool as it sounds? I know we have to file a
Canadian/international flight plan -- any gotchas there?

3. Before going to Niagara Falls, we want to spend a day in Sandusky, OH,
doing the roller coasters. Any tips on where to stay while we're there?

If you're curious, the entire flight plan is:

IOW-K15 (Osage Beach, MO, for the Cherokee Pilots Association annual 3-day
convention)
K15-SKY (Sandusky, OH) Roller coasters...
SKY-IAG (Niagara Falls, NY) Water falls...
IAG-DET (Detroit City) Old cars, airplanes & buildings...
DET-IOW (Iowa City)

Any advice on other portions of this flight are welcome, too!

When you go to the falls, be sure to do the Maid of the Mist boat ride.
It sounds hokey and touristy, but it is very interesting, and gives you
a view of the falls that you can't get from anywhere else.

When I did it, it left from the Canadian side.

Just my opinion.

Brad

And while you're in Toronto, have Tea at the Royal York Hotel.

I just came from a gathering of my soccer team.
One of the family's was in Niagra Falls last weekend.
They report that the area has seen a boom in new hotels.
They also reported that there are young teens employed in many jobs.

When you go to the falls, be sure to do the Maid of the Mist boat ride. It
sounds hokey and touristy, but it is very interesting, and gives you a
view of the falls that you can't get from anywhere else.

We hope to do just that.

When Mary and I rode our motorcycle to the Falls many moons ago, we couldn't
scrape together enough money to do the Maid of the Mist. This time,
(assuming we actually end up where we're planning to go), we plan to show
the kids the boat ride.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"