If you’re a pilot and you have a family it’s sometimes hard to fit your hobby around vacations. Usually you have time for a flight and I get a sigh from my wife or we go on vacation and I miss flying for a weekend. This week was different but I have to take you back a couple weekends.
Best Of Both Worlds, Flying and Biking
About a month ago I received text from one of my best friends who used to be a cycling buddy of mine. We love the outdoors and would ride our bikes or Radwagon electric bikes (with the baby carriers) anywhere we could. He sent me a video from a YouTuber named CityNerd (video linked) which outlined a bike friendly community outside of Bend called SunRiver. I thought it was great to have the family at a bike friendly vacation and we could rent a home there but then the hammer dropped, THEY HAVE A PRIVATE AIRSTRIP ON THE RESORT PROPERTY!
Candidly I’ve been looking for somewhere to vacation which involved flying for years without divulging this to my significant other since everything doesn’t revolve around aviation for her. This was perfect and we booked the trip.
Flying Into Your Own Vacation Spot
I called SunRiver before I departed my home airport and they were completely happy that we were coming to stay and would be flying in. They asked that we call them once we arrived so they could arrange a car to come pick us up, I figured this would be a taxi or something. The flight was uneventful and I cruised in our of 9,500 MSL since there are some mountain ranges close by and I descended into the very easy to see airport. The only think you need to remember is don’t overfly east of the airport for noise abatement, you will be staying in those homes most likely.
Once landed I gave the resort a call and in a few minutes our free shuttle arrived. We took the shuttle up to the lodge, grabbed some refreshments and walked a short distance to our VRBO. The community has bike paths everywhere and plenty of bike rentals so no need for a car which makes it amazing for those who fly in. I’ve never been to a resort community quite like SunRiver with all the amenities like 4 golf courses, a water park, restaurants, bars and stores on site. The surreal vacation ended and I still got to fly our small family back home which was a perfect cap to the vacation. We avoided airline travel which is what we wanted in our relaxing vacation and we got to explore a new community on bike, the best way in my opinion.
Conclusion
I can’t wait to go back! Next time I’m bringing golf clubs and a few friend since the courses looked great.
