2018-04-09-Sun-N-Fun-Lakeland-FL-Bahamas: Sun-N-Fun in Lakeland, Florida and a fly-out to the Bahamas was FUN in the SUN!!! 4 pilots took two airplanes, a Cessna 182RG and a Mooney Bravo M20M Turbo from Colorado to Florida for the annual Sun-N-Fun (read sun and fun) fly-in aviation convention, training and "spring break for pilots". While there, we flew seaplanes, Jer/ is seaplane rated, the others want to return to get their ratings. 3 of us also flew the Cessna 182 RG out to the Bahamas to Stella Maris and Staniel Cay to snorkel and "swim with the pigs". Of course, the food was great and the friends and companionship sterling! The Mooney flew out at 15,000 MSL with the crew on oxygen and saw ground speeds in excess of 232 knots... on the return, we flew lower and experienced headwinds with ground speeds down to 108 knots. 04/09/18-04/16/18. The dates of the pictures are correct, but I forgot to set the time.

	Climbing out of Denver, 9k for 15K, 04/09/18	On Mountain High Oxygen system, 04/09/18	Blue sky, tops 12K, 04/09/18	Tailwinds... 165KN indicated, 201KN ground speed, 04/09/18	Cruise 15K, 12.8 GPH, 27"MP, 04/09/18

	Cruising eastbound, south of the front, 04/09/18	Cooking along at 15K, 216KN ground speed.	Now cloudy in front of us.	Jer/ and Carl alert at 15K, 04/09/18	DeQueen, KDEQ, AR, 1st fuel stop, 04/09/18

	Carl checking oil at DeQueen, KDEQ, AR, 04/09/18	Yea! More tailwind, 214KN ground speed, 04/09/18	Cruising 15K, 214KN Ground speed, 04/09/18	On top, 15K, 04/09/18	House in Haines City, FL, 4BR with pool, 04/10/18

	Local Bermuda grass is coarse, 04/10/18	Living room, 04/10/18	Front hallway to family room, kitchen, and bedrooms 04/10/18	Kitchen and dining room, 04/10/18	Master BR. Pool, also goes around to the left, 04/10/18

	Patio and pool. Local code requires fence, 04/10/18	Family room, 04/10/18	Jack Brown's Seaplane base, Jer/ and SeaCubs, 04/10/18	Instructor demonstrating approach, right base in the SeaCub, 04/10/18	Jer/ in the back seat of the SeaCub, 1, 04/10/18

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	Jer/ in the back seat of the SeaCub, 2, 04/10/18	Instructor flying after a touch and go on the water, 04/10/18	Houses with docks, 04/10/18	Water, water everywhere, 04/10/18	Instructor landing at Brown's, Lake Jessie, 04/10/18

	Brown's Seaplane Base, ramping the SeaCub, 04/10/18	Jer/ in Piper J-3 SeaCub. Pilot flys from the back seat, 1, 04/10/18	Jer/ in Piper J-3 SeaCub. Pilot flys from the back seat, 2, 04/10/18	Jer/ in pilot's seat (rear) of the SeaCub, 04/10/18	Piper J-3 SeaCub on ramp, one taking off, 04/10/18

	I wanna be a seaplane when I get my wings! 04/10/18	Andy's Arctic Drive-In, inexpensive good food, 1, 04/10/18	Andy's Arctic Drive-In, inexpensive good food, 2, 04/10/18	Petrel Seamax display, 04/10/18	AOPA Program Pavilion, 04/10/18

	AOPA display. Yes, I got the shirt, 04/10/18	AOPA Super Cub Sweepstakes airplane, 04/10/18	AOPA seminar, 04/10/18	Art vendor and their camper, 04/10/18	Kelly Aerospace go fast Mooney, 04/10/18

	Sonex/Onex display, 04/10/18	Sonex/Onex display, note rain, 04/10/18	Lyle demoing headset, 04/11/18	Jer/ at QB hut for beer 30, 04/10/18	Time for pool, food and beer, 04/10/18

	SnF parking is $10/day, 04/11/18	Chuck, your motorhome spot is empty! 04/11/18	Kid's pedal airplane, 04/11/18	Kelly, Cardinal for sale, not retract, 04/11/18	International Cessna 120/140 contact card, fuzzy, 04/11/18

	Cherry Pocket outside bar, Kyle and Jeff at far end, 04/11/18	Cherry Pocket protocol sign, 04/11/18	At Winter Haven, KGIF, fueling N1857R for the trip to the Bahamas, 04/12/18	Winter Haven, KGIF, FL, ramp is not full, 04/12/18	Carl checking Mooney servicing and oil, 04/12/18

	Cessna 182 RG, N1857R, waiting for clearance 04/12/18	Off Winter Haven. Seaplane base on right, 04/12/18	Hazy day in Florida, 04/12/18	Going "feet wet" over the Atlantic Ocean, left, 04/12/18	Going "feet wet" over the Atlantic Ocean, right, 04/12/18

	Clouds and ship, enroute to Marsh Harbor, MYAM/MHH, 1, 04/12/18	Clouds and ship, enroute to Marsh Harbor, MYAM/MHH, 2, 04/12/18	Not much ship traffic observed, 04/12/18	Few, small roads on the smaller, inhabited islands, 04/12/18	Many uninhabited islands, 04/12/18

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	Bahamas, first landfall, coming up on Freeport, 04/12/18	Freeport Airport Bahamas, looking S, 04/12/18	Landing at Marsh Harbor, 04/12/18	Marsh Harbor, 04/12/18	Marsh Harbor Airport, MYAM/MHH, note ~15KN crosswind, 04/12/18

	Marsh Harbor, getting ready to clear Immigration, 04/12/18	Bahama Customs/Immigration at Marsh Harbor, Jeff at the door, 04/12/18	Cessna 182 RG, N1857R at Marsh Harbor, Bahamas, 04/12/18	On the ground at Marsh Harbor, 1, 04/12/18	On the ground at Marsh Harbor, 2, 04/12/18

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	Blue, empty ocean, 04/12/18	Island with road, 04/12/18	Sailing Catamarans at anchor, 04/12/18	Landing at Stella Maris, 04/12/18	Cessna 182 RG, N1857R at Stella Maris, MYLS/SML, FBO, then Customs in the background 04/12/18

	Yes, Value Added Taxes (VAT), $7.47/gallon 100LL, 04/12/18	Couple who runs the Stella Maris FBO, 04/12/18	Stella Maris Resort sign, 04/12/18	Patio outside Stella Maris Resort, 04/12/18	Ocean view from Stella Maris Resort, 04/12/18

	View from Stella Maris living room, 04/12/18	Stella Maris Resort, pull out couch, 04/12/18	Kyle and Jeff had the bedroom, 04/12/18	Jer/ drying off after snorkeling, 04/12/18	Jeff tanning and drying off after snorkeling, 04/12/18

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	Stella Maris directions sign, 04/12/18	Stella Maris FBO desk, with cats. Lady has been the FBO for 21 years, 04/18/18	Preflighting Cessna 182 RG, N1857R at Stella Maris, 04/13/18	Stella Maris Resort is just beyond the airport, looking E, 04/13/18	Approach into Staniel Cay, windy, 04/12/18

	Golf cart on Staniel Cay, Bahamas, 04/12/18	"Coral" Cottage on Staniel Cay, 1, 04/13/18	"Coral" Cottage on Staniel Cay, 2, 04/13/18	"Coral" Cottage on Staniel Cay, 3, 04/13/18	Staniel Cay, Coral Cottage rates, 04/13/18

	Yes, Bahamas! Drive on the "correct", left side of the road, 04/13/18	Local food/everything store on Staniel Cay, 04/13/18	Staniel Cay Airport, looking SE from a high point, 04/13/18	Loading 17' rental boat, 04/13/18	Ready to depart for "swimming with the pigs" island, 04/13/18

	Looking back at "Serenity House" and rental boat dock, 04/13/18	Ahoy! Pirate ship weighing anchor, 04/13/18	Large boat visiting the pig beach, 1, 04/13/18	Large boat visiting the pig beach, 2, 04/13/18	Feed me, feed me, 04/13/18

	Feed me, or I will climb in the boat, 04/13/18	The birds will catch bread and chips in the air, before the pigs get them, 04/13/18	Jer/ on pig beach, 04/13/18	The pigs wade out and swim to you if you are holding food, 04/13/18	Smaller pigs, 04/13/18

	Multi-colored pig, 04/13/18	Larger boats stand off and the little boats come to the beach, 04/13/18	Our little boat on pig beach, 04/13/18	The pigs are fed here if they are still hungry, 04/13/18	A few pigs in the water, 04/13/18

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	Swimming Pigs at Staniel Cay, 04/13/18	Kyle and Jeff snorkeling off pig beach, 1, 04/13/18	Kyle and Jeff snorkeling off pig beach, 2, 04/13/18	Jer/ standing by while they are snorkeling, 04/13/18	"The Grotto", a cave and water passage that the tide will carry you thru, 04/13/18

	Airplane wreck in3' of water. shadow on the right is a nurse shark, 04/13/18	Back to swimming pig beach, mama pig is huge 04/13/18	Staniel Cay Yacht Club Restaurant, 04/13/18	Staniel Cay Yacht Club docks, 04/13/18	Airborne off Staniel Cay for Freeport, 04/14/18

	Amazingly hazy, note moored boats, 04/14/18	Climbing to 6K, over the clouds, 04/14/18	Freeport, Bahamas looks like a real city, 04/14/18	Coming ashore at Freeport for customs/immigration, 04/14/18	Freeport, Bahamas customs/immigration, 04/14/18

	The ramp at Freeport, as we taxi for IFR departure, 04/14/18	Hazy coming back to the Florida mainland, 04/14/18	Fort Pierce, FL for customs/immigration, 04/14/18	4 person survival raft, 36lbs, ... unused! 04/14/18	Left downwind KGIF RWY 23, note Brown's Seaplane Base at the wingtip, 04/14/18

	SeaCub on the water, 04/14/18	Stearman biplane taxiing for departure at KGIF, 04/14/18	Sun-N-Fun, inflatable "American Eagle" over the clouds, 04/14/18	Society of Aviation and Flight Educators (SAFE) booth, 04/14/18	Night Airshow, powered parachutes, 04/14/18

	Smoke trails against the sunset, 04/14/18	Fantasy of Flight, Constellation, 04/15/18	Engine progression, 04/15/18	Liberty V-12 engine story, 04/15/18	De Havilland DH-4 story, 04/15/18

	De Havilland DH-4, 04/15/18	Gee Bee Racer #7, 04/15/18	Bomb site in nose of B-26 , 04/15/18	Airplanes on display, 04/15/18	Le Rhone 80 hp engine story, 04/15/18

	Le Rhone engine, 04/15/18	4 engine bomber, 04/15/18	Early airplanes, 04/15/18	The other Gee Bee, 04/15/18	3 cylinder engine, 04/15/18

	Cut-away of a radial engine, 04/15/18	Car on display, 04/15/18	Miss Los Angeles, 04/15/18	DGA-5 "Ike" story, 04/15/18	Ike, 04/15/18

	Engines that powered the P-40 Warhawk... new, pickled after 10 hours run-in, 04/15/18	"Ina", "Macon Belle", P-51 Mustang, 04/15/18	Biplane, 04/15/18	Early Jet engine, 04/15/18	Fantasy of Flight ramp, 04/15/18

	Old museum will become maintenance. Note Sunderland seaplane on opposite ramp, C47 on right, 04/15/18	Display of aviation stuff for kids, 04/15/18	America's Top Ten Aces of WWII, 1, 04/15/18	America's Top Ten Aces of WWII, 2, 04/15/18	Fuel stop Poplarville M13, MS. There was a WWII aircraft in front of us at the fuel bay, 04/16/18

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