October 2, 2003:  Flying down the middle of this reservoir in Three Rivers, Michigan at 1700' would place you in a left downwind leg for runway 23 at the Three Rivers airport.  This was a very convenient ground reference point for a beginning pilot to learn how the runway should appear from downwind.

June 23, 2005:  The natural randomness of Lake Rousseau merges with a razor-like cut courtesy of the Army Corps of Engineers.  This is the "Cross Florida Barge Canal", located just north of Crystal River.  At eight miles long, the manmade portion of the canal hardly crosses Florida.  This is a completed portion of the project, originally intended to link the St John's River on the state's east side to the Gulf of Mexico via a series of canals and locks.  The obstruction in the canal near where it joins Lake Rousseau is the Inglis Lock.  The project was never completed, but it made for a striking sight as we flew overhead in Warrior 481.

August 21, 2005:  Lake Orion (town and lake) looking northward from 7500' feet.  My uncle has lived on the eastern shore of Lake Orion (pronounced "or-yun") for as long as I can remember.  Every Fourth of July, the town puts on an incredible fireworks display over the lake.  Some of my fondest childhood memories are sitting on the seawall at my uncle's house on fireworks night.

August 21, 2005:  Another view of Lake Orion (the region) from a lower altitude.  Lake Orion (the lake) is in the center of the photo.  The smaller lake, bottom-middle of frame, is Elk Horn Lake, the lake I grew-up on.  This was my first aerial visit to my childhood home in Oakland County.

August 12, 2006:  In satellite photos, the Finger Lakes of western New York state are vaguely parallel geological lacerations resembling huge claw marks across the terrain.  Canandaigua Lake, shown here as seen from 7500', is one of the medium-sized lakes.

October 7, 2006:  Near Alexandria Bay, one of the Thousand Islands in the St Lawrence River is Heart Island, home to Boldt Castle.  Kristy and I visited the castle earlier that day and took some photos from ground level, too.

October 7, 2006:  The stretch of the St Lawrence River just east of Lake Ontario is known as the Thousand Islands region for fairly obvious reasons.  Lots and lots of islands...

April 22, 2007:  This photo of the Susquehanna River was taken while climbing away from Piper Memorial Airport in Lock Haven, PA.  Lock Haven sits in the Susquehanna River valley surrounded by some significant hills.  Whenever I hear "Susquehanna", I can't help but think about the "Susquehanna Hat Company" (aka, "Bagel Street") Abbot & Costello routine.

May 26, 2007:  Shaped like a giant "Y", Keuka Lake is the most distinctively shaped Finger Lake in western New York (see a satellite image here).

June 16, 2007:  The photo above was captured while climbing away from runway 27R at Piper Memorial Airport, paralleling the Susquehanna.

February 16, 2008: After expending so much energy gouging-out the impressive Letchworth gorge, the muddy Genesee river lazily meanders across the countryside downstream from Letchworth.

May 23, 2008:  What was once novel has become routine - our route took us directly across Ontario, Canada.  Pictured above is the Welland Canal that connects Lake Ontario (top of frame) with Lake Erie and, ultimately, the westernmost great lakes with the rest of the world.