12/12/2000 -- December 11, 2000
From Marc Lee’s House
College Station Texas USA
We crossed the ocean for the last time last time and landed at San Francisco California delighted to rest our feet but once again on the ‘big island.’ An in-flight decision 200 miles over water had us landing at Half Moon Bay airport rather than the busy San Francisco International Airport on a beautiful California afternoon. Dreamcatcher’s wheels touched down after a 16.5hr flight and both Chris and I were happy to enjoy a hamburger from the small restaurant there as we shared our story with the owner, Mark. It was our first time back on the US mainland since mid September and we while our flight wasn’t expected to land at their airport, the hospitality there and good folks at the local restaurant sure did make it feel like we were home. We met some friends there and had dinner with Chris Dixon, Ken Wall, Tim Sherer and Vanessa at a small Greek café and shared stories of travelling the high seas and the far off distant places. Tim runs the world famous Goofy Foot Surf School in Maui and Vanessa is a firefighter and surfer by profession. It was inspiring to visit with other world travelers as we all shared our experiences, passing thoughts and ambitions over sandwiches and tall ceramic coffee mugs fueling the night.
Greeted by the press during our pre-flight, we decided to delay our departure for a few hours. Tim and Vanessa missed a few cold morning hours of surfing “maverick’s” and we’re glad they stayed for a bit longer to see us take to the sky once again.
With Chris Dixon aboard Dreamcatcher, we three departed Half Moon bay after fueling the aircraft with an additional 40 gallons of fuel to safely arrive at Orange County. Soon we were airborne and climbing over the coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean turning southbound over incoming swells and breaking water on the rocky shores below.
Flying ten feet above the water with the window open is an exhilarating experience and with the engines running strong we were floating along waves like pelicans riding the windward currents of rolling surf. Just outside Monterey Bay, we spotted a pod of grey whales travelling just one mile offshore as we rocked our wings saying hello as they blew air. Headed to the islands of Hawaii between Maui and Lanai for the season, the grey whales were on the same trip we had just accomplished, probably wondering why we’d depart the warm waters for the arctic weather of the northeast. I guess we can learn a lot from the simplicity of nature, but it’s a whole different story to replace calendars and posters with airline tickets…
We continued down the spectacular California coast as the evening sun was setting to our right and landed in John Wayne Orange County Airport only three hours after departing Half Moon Bay. In a short time we were in El Paso on a small strip in southern New Mexico called Santa Teresa greeted by friends, family and a live Mexican band. Back home after 26,450 nautical miles of travelling in just three months, we headed for Coronado High School, where our dream of flying around the world had begun. Polk Elementary was next where we spoke with several classrooms answering questions about the flight and how it came about.
We had lunch with a few good friends, people we had once called teachers back in high school. As ordinary as an afternoon meal at Avila’s small Mexican restaurant in old El Paso, or as inexplicable as living in a dream, we sat and shared stories, listened to advise and spoke of the almost tangible fabric of excitement floating there, a dream two high school boys once dreamt in a small sandwich just over the river--now shared by so many.
