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I had the day off and so did my buddy Eddie, so we hit some trails just outside Rainier National Park.
The weather was perfect for the climb: we started in the 50's for our 5-mile slog up Ranger Creek trail. I love riding through those thick forests, especially when you are going up and have time to admire them!
We reached the top and turned onto the Palisades trail. Once we reached the first overlook, we stopped to eat lunch.
You can see the rustic Ranger Creek airstrip from the viewpoint. As we were eating, I spotted an airplane taking off. I pointed it out to Eddie, and said "Looks like the pilot is having trouble" because he was rocking back and forth (probably from the winds). He reached the end of the strip and wasn't very high off the ground. I said, "I hope he doesn't crash!" The pilot banked right to avoid some trees at the end of the runway. It looked like the pilot was suddenly trying to land. He touched down, bounced, then caught the nose on the ground and flipped over.
Eddie and I were stunned. We couldn't tell if anyone got out of the plane, because we were 3'000 above it. I called 911 from Eddie's cell phone and explained the situation to the operator, who got me in contact with the nearest fire department.
Anyway, we eventually continued on our ride. Palisades trail skirts the edge of the cliffs overlooking the White River valley. The views are incredible. Eventually we turned down and started cruising through the forests.
We returned to the car happy but tired! We went to the airstrip and took a picture of the empty airplane. We spoke with some campers who were there. They said the couple in the airplane was alright, mostly just extremely shocked.
The weather was perfect for the climb: we started in the 50's for our 5-mile slog up Ranger Creek trail. I love riding through those thick forests, especially when you are going up and have time to admire them!
We reached the top and turned onto the Palisades trail. Once we reached the first overlook, we stopped to eat lunch.
You can see the rustic Ranger Creek airstrip from the viewpoint. As we were eating, I spotted an airplane taking off. I pointed it out to Eddie, and said "Looks like the pilot is having trouble" because he was rocking back and forth (probably from the winds). He reached the end of the strip and wasn't very high off the ground. I said, "I hope he doesn't crash!" The pilot banked right to avoid some trees at the end of the runway. It looked like the pilot was suddenly trying to land. He touched down, bounced, then caught the nose on the ground and flipped over.
Eddie and I were stunned. We couldn't tell if anyone got out of the plane, because we were 3'000 above it. I called 911 from Eddie's cell phone and explained the situation to the operator, who got me in contact with the nearest fire department.
Anyway, we eventually continued on our ride. Palisades trail skirts the edge of the cliffs overlooking the White River valley. The views are incredible. Eventually we turned down and started cruising through the forests.
We returned to the car happy but tired! We went to the airstrip and took a picture of the empty airplane. We spoke with some campers who were there. They said the couple in the airplane was alright, mostly just extremely shocked.
