Hunter has been itching to go to Smith Mountain Lake. He has a friend that lives up there and has been there many times, but never by air. We finally got a chance to go. He flew directly up there from Sanford and I assisted as navigator. It looked just like it did the other two times I flew there. He was nervous about the short field and all the trees around it, but his pattern, approach and landing were all as good as they could’ve been.
There was nobody around and it was getting dark, so we just taxied back, closed our flight via cell phone, and took off for Martinsville/Blue Ridge. It was approaching dark at Blue Ridge, and Hunter’s still not night current, so I would be taking us back home. The cafe was open, so we stopped for a little something to eat; nothing big, just a salad bar. It was pretty busy. Apparently a lot of evening church groups come for the buffet.
We weren’t able to refuel at Smith Mountain Lake or Blue Ridge, so we decided to stop at Shiloh, just 14 miles south, and use their self-serve to top off. It was a quick up and down flight and one of my worst approaches, but the landing was fine.
The flight back to Sanford was uneventful and I got to log two night landings, bringing my night currency more current.