Plane lands on Lake Pizaquid

BY NADINE ARMSTRONG

The Hants Journal

NovaNewsNow.com

Downtown Windsor received a real surprise Oct. 18 when a small bush plane landed on Lake Pizaquid. Onlookers were delighted to see the craft land, and many curious shutterbugs turned up to capture an image that was unique to the town.

Pilot Harry Balkome and friend Paul Featherstone had visited Windsor last week to take in the town's annual Pumpkin Regatta festivities and were so impressed, they made a return engagement by air.

“We scouted it out during the Regatta and decided to come back,” said Balkome, a Blockhouse native who has flown airspace all over the Maritimes.

“It’s one thing to see the town driving through, but when you see it by air it’s fantastic.” And he wanted share the experience with Featherstone, who had traveled in from Alberta.

“This is the best time of year to see the Valley; the woods are full of colour, and the Valley is just so expansive,” Balkome said.

Featherstone said he was in awe of the view Hants County offered. “In Alberta, we don’t get this variation of colour; the trees just turn yellow. And when you fly down low you have an real appreciation of how much land there is here and how enormous the Minas Basin really is.”

Balkome is an experienced pilot and member of the Stanley Flying Club, so he wasn’t concerned about landing on the uncharted waters of the lake. “You don’t need to file a flight plan,” he said, “just know the restricted areas. ”

His plane, a 2006 steel-framed Rans, is ideal for recreational use. It’s lightweight, coming in at 1,232 pounds and 100 horsepower. “This is the best of its kind,” Balkome said proudly.

The two said they received a warm welcome the moment they landed as a member from the canoe club lent a hand docking the plane. Later, many passersby stopped to watch the plane’s departure.

“It’s just so funny how fast you can make a trip,” Featherstone said. “We can get here in about 15 minutes. Now that’s the way to travel; as the crow flies.”