A Most Amazingly Persistent Fog

This Christmas Eve morning dawned sunny and (for December, in Iowa)
warm, with not a wisp of wind.

Within the hour, the sun went out, as an incredibly dense, almost foamy
freezing fog developed. Soon the street lights came back on, we
couldn't see across the street, and everything was instantly coated in
an ever-thickening layer of frost. Our "White Christmas" had arrived,
albeit without snow.

All thoughts of flying gone, the kids and I drove into the hotel to
meet Mary (who had delivered breakfast to our guests), feeling our way
through the incredibly thick fog. It was beautiful, of course, but had
the effect of grounding EVERYONE. Even the jet jockeys were waiting it
out...

Right around noon, things began to break up, and by 1 PM, everything to
the north and west was 10 SM and clear. Just to the east of town,
however, we could see a wall of fog, looking for all the world like the
parted Red Sea in the movie "The Ten Commandments".

Checking with Flight Service, it was apparent that conditions were
improving everywhere, and our destination (Waterloo, IA) was clear and
calm. So, off we launched, with Mary as PIC, arcing powerfully into
the cool, calm skies... God, it felt great to fly!

Climbing out, the "Red Sea" was an impenetrable wall of cloud, maybe
300 feet thick, starting about 10 blocks north of our home on the east
side of Iowa City, and continuing northeast to the horizon. In every
other quadrant, the skies were clear -- and we were heading Northwest
-- so off we went. I commented to Mary that the layer started
precisely over a grocery store we both knew, and soon forgot all about
it...

Three hours later, after enjoying a delightful lunch at Livingston's
(the on-field restaurant at KALO), we returned, this time with me in
the left seat, and my 16-year-old son acting as copilot. The air was
crystal clear and the winds light as we climbed smoothly to 5500 feet,
and switched on the XM radio. This was Joe's first chance to play with
XM in the panel-docked 496, which turned out to be the REAL reason he
wanted to fly right seat. Soon we were "discussing" what music NOT to
play while flying...but I digress...

As we over-flew Cedar Rapids, and began our descent for Iowa City, we
could see the aforementioned "Red Sea" wall of fog in the distance.
Since Iowa City's AWOS was reporting "10 and clear", we knew it
wouldn't be an issue, but were wary of it nonetheless, lest it move
over the field.

Imagine our surprise when, as I entered an upwind, we noted that it
still lay PRECISELY over the very same grocery store, and still
stretched off to the Northeast. It no longer reached to the horizon,
but the dense fog layer had not moved one inch from that spot in over
three hours!

After we parked the plane, Joe and I zipped over to the mall for some
last-minute Xmas shopping, and drove home past that aforementioned
grocery store. Sure enough, the fog started exactly at that store,
reducing visibility to less than a block, and stretched northeast.
Heading south, we were instantly out of it, and back in the sun.

It was the most unusual fog I've seen in Iowa. In Wisconsin (our home
state) we could get lake-effect fog that would sometimes last for days
-- but Iowa has no similar weather-influencing body of water to induce
such persistent weather. Fog here usually develops -- and fades -- in
place, without sharp boundaries. Not today.

I was most thankful that the fog decided to plant itself two miles
northeast of the field, as it just as easily could have socked us in
all day. It was an excellent Christmas present, and allowed us to
spend Christmas eve afternoon doing what we love best!

Merry Christmas, all!
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination'