March 2012
Our son and his family typically head south during their vacations, and the trips include places that interest their children—our grandchildren—ages 10 and six. Our daughter-in-law Alison suggested Legoland and the Clearwater Marine Aquarium on Florida’s Gulf Coast as our family vacation destination last Christmas.
Arrival
The trip to Florida started from two locations, Goddard, Kan. and Chapin, S.C., via two means of transportation: an aircraft and an automobile. Both groups started out at approximately the same time. From South Carolina, the mileage is 505 sm over interstate roads, and the flight plan route from Kansas to Florida is 982 nm (1,130 sm). With the car traveling 70-75 mph (maybe a little faster on dry roads) and the airplane cruising 137 knots (158 mph), the estimated time for both was 8.5 hours.
The winds and weather favored our airplane this day, with tailwinds of 55 knots to Clarksville, Ark., 45 knots to Marion, Ala. and 15 knots to Lakeland. The automobile group slogged through heavy rains, traveling at less than 45 mph for the first 150 miles. We talked at each fuel stop and it soon became apparent that the airplane would get to Lakeland an hour and a half earlier than the younger Lloyds would arrive in the car.
Legoland
Legoland occupies the former Cypress Gardens theme park in Winter Haven. This venue was founded in the late 1930s by Richard Pope and his family. The park offered daily water ski shows in a protected cove on Lake Eloise, and the adjacent gardens were available for visitors to walk through between shows.
Time passed, and the Popes sold the business, and Cypress Gardens slowly declined until its closing in 2009. The property reopened on Oct. 15, 2011 as Legoland Florida amusement park. Two years—and millions of dollars in improvements—had transformed the park into a Lego paradise.
Our grandson Patrick is fascinated with Lego building blocks, and this is a must-see destination for anyone who enjoys Legos. Parents and grandparents will be rewarded with grins, and everyone delights in watching children’s eyes pop with surprise.
As you enter the park, entertainers are everywhere. A juggler near the entrance mesmerized Callie, our granddaughter. Moving first through the shops for food, souvenirs and Legos, you’ll walk past Island in the Sky, a rotating platform that rises 150 feet above the park and provides a panoramic view of the Lake Eloise area.
Next is Fun Town, where a two-story carousel provides thrills for all ages and boasts galloping horses and other creatures.
Legoland is a Lego builder’s paradise. There are houses, dragons, castles, people, and even full size replica of a Ford automobile—all constructed from standard size Lego blocks. Master builders work behind the scenes constructing all the major venues in the park. The block count has to be almost incalculable.
There are four different roller coasters in the park. The Lego Kingdom contains a castle and The Dragon roller coaster that goes up and down, round and about then enters the castle dungeon inhabited by dragons, guards, and Merlin the magician. A milder ride is Merlin’s Challenge. From there, kids can go to the Forestmen’s Hideout which features slides, rope climbs and netting to climb and descend.
Miniland USA takes Lego construction to the ultimate level with building and grounds depicting landmarks in New York, Washington, D.C., Las Vegas and California; as well as Daytona International Speedway, Kennedy Space Center and a cove called Pirate’s Shores. Many scenes are animated. A band marches in front to the Capitol. Ships cruise in Pirate’s Shores, and vehicles move along many streets and highways in Miniland USA.
Pirates’ Cove on the lakefront has covered seating to see the water show that involves skiers, pirates on jet skis, a huge Lego pirate ship and a host of Lego animated characters. The skiers go over a ski jump and then come and man the ship tied to the dock. Then, the pirate captain comes to take over the ship. It is a great attraction for the young ones, with lots of action.
The garden’s entrance is near Pirates’ Cove and starts in a lush environment with azaleas, ferns and other low growing plants. In an open area, you’ll see a lawn with bushes and trees on both sides, and a gazebo at the top on the hill. Climbing the hill you’ll come upon a banyan tree that is 100 feet by 200 feet across and has many branches dropping from high in the tree to root in the ground below. Coming out of the vegetation you’ll find the gazebo, where you can look across the lawn below for a view of the lake.
Late in the afternoon, Patrick and Callie were still going wide open and went off with their parents. Sara and I sat near the Ford Junior Driving School for three- to five-year-olds. Approximately 20 young drivers entered the track and selected a Lego electric car with a top speed of two miles per hour. After the attendants strapped everyone in their cars, the cars were ready to roll.
Some started off right away, while other children just sat there and smiled. A few of the ones driving forgot to turn and came to a stop on the curves. Now the fun began as the traffic jams happened in back of the stalled cars. We were both smiling and laughing as the attendants quickly untangled the cars and got everyone going again. Finally this group’s turn ended and another group came on the track for their own personal driving adventure.
Clearwater Marine Aquarium
The next day it was off to Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The recent movie “Dolphin Tale” tells the true story of an injured dolphin that Clearwater Marine Aquarium rescued. She is now a star attraction at the museum.
The dolphin, named Winter, had been ensnared in a crab trap and the accident damaged her tail so severely that amputation was necessary. The story ends happily; Winter was fitted with a prosthetic tail. The outgrowth of this research has been the development of padding material that is useful for improving the comfort of human amputees.
The aquarium has multiple tanks for injured sea animals. If they are still young enough when their rehabilitation is complete, these dolphins, sea otters and sea turtles are returned to their natural environment. In the meantime, they are in tanks for all the aquarium visitors to view and enjoy.
Nicolas is one dolphin who puts on a show multiple times each day. He is a real ham—and after he performs a trick, he comes back to his trainer for a fish treat. Did you know that dolphins eat 35 pounds of fish per day to keep up their stamina?
Be warned that if you sit the first two rows, that you will get wet! One of Nicolas’s favorite tricks is to duck his head and splash vigorously. Another is to swim around the pool, inverted, at high speed. What a show!
Outside the aquarium entrance is a shuttle trolley that takes you to a location that describes the movie sets and cast from “Dolphin Tale.” The movie’s production is shown very well in these exhibits. In one of them, visitors can see how the prosthesis evolved.
The aquarium was closed for three months in late 2010 for set construction and filming. If you have not seen this movie, consider it. It was released in September 2011, and is available now as a DVD or on the Internet through streaming video.
Late in the day we travelled to Clearwater Beach for a delicious seafood dinner, and then watched the sun set over the Gulf of Mexico. Patrick and Callie were more interested in playing on the white sand beach, so everyone had a good time here, too—and the adults could recuperate from two days of activity before returning to South Carolina and Kansas at the end of our fun-filled vacation.
Charles Lloyd has logged 10,000 hours since his first flying lesson in 1954. He worked for Cessna Aircraft for 16 years, and retired as captain for a major fractional aircraft ownership company. His personal aircraft is a great business tool for his real estate investment company. Send questions or comments to editor@www.piperflyer.com.
As pilots, we all know that planning is a big part of making a trip go smoothly and economically. Knowing yourself—and your aircraft—well enough to make informed decisions can go a long way toward making a cross-country trip memorable and easy.
Our aircraft endurance is four-and-a-half hours. We want to be on the ground—preferably on a runway—three-and-a-half hours after takeoff. Normally the first leg on any trip is two hours or less.
We used the information supplied at AirNav.com to plot our great circle route from Lake Waltanna, Kan. (SN65) to an airport between Winter Haven and Clearwater, Fla., and we chose the Lakeland area for its convenient location. In addition, the Courtyard Lakeland by Marriott had fantastic pricing, a morning buffet, and a pool and hot tub for the grandkids.
We checked fuel prices and FBO comments at area airports and selected Columbia Air Services at Lakeland Linder Regional (KLAL). Columbia has both self- and full-service Avgas.
AirNav has trip planning options for locating the shortest route with stops, most economical with stops, or you may plan your own stop methods. The most economical route was from near Gulf Shores, Ala. direct across the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf route is not a good idea for single engine piston aircraft with other routings available. Planned stops were Clarksville, Ark. (H35) and Marion, Ala. (A08) based on facilities with Avgas prices at the bottom of the range.
One point for pilots to consider is that Marion is tucked on the southeast corner of a Military Operating Area (MOA) that was hot. The vectors started to make changing our destination to Montgomery a possibility when we were cleared direct to Marion.
For the final leg to Lakeland, Cross City VOR was our intermediate waypoint to stay away from the Gulf and out of the northern edge of the Tampa arrival airspace.
The Columbia Aircraft Services attendant was there to guide us to our ramp spot and help with our luggage. After checking in at the desk, we were given the options of a rental car or the courtesy van. The courtesy van could take us to the Courtyard; it’s a 10 minute drive from the airport to the hotel.
The facilities at Lakeland are up-to-date and clean, with flight planning readily available. Lakeland arrival and departure was quick with minimal traffic.
Our trip back involved a detour north to Augusta, Ga. before turning northwest to Kansas. I highly recommend stopping in Winchester, Tenn. (KBGF) for fuel and an overnight. This great little airport is in the center of a triangle with Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Nashville on the corners. The airport manager was most hospitable and brought the crew car out to the aircraft while we completed our tiedown. The Best Western Inn’s pricing was excellent and our dinner at Western Sirloin Steak House was great.
Landing at off-the-main-track airports is fun, and besides that, we always meet many interesting people with fascinating stories. Plus, Avgas prices can be well below those found at major airports. In addition to that, minimal airport traffic makes the trip hassle-free.
Getting There: Resources
Columbia Aircraft Services
Lakeland Linder (KLAL)
Lakeland, Fla.
(863) 647-3911
Courtyard Lakeland
Lakeland, Fla.
(863) 802-9000
Winchester Municipal (KBGF)
Winchester, Tenn.
(931) 967-3148
Best Western Inn
Winchester, Tenn.
(931) 967-9444
