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Old 08-10-2018, 01:52 PM   #204
woofa.express
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Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Tocumwal, NSW, Australia
Posts: 1,744
Default Re: tell a Model A related story

Morundah in the fog ( in the late 80’s.)

One winter’s morning I was to start a spray job for a farmer near Narrandera, about a 30 minute flight north. Mike Quilter. Before daylight I called Mike to enquire about fog. It’s clear Mike reported. So I departed.
North ofJerilderie fog was forming and soon everything was foggy. I called home but my wife Patsy said fog had formed there too and Mike had called to say the same. I called my friend Robby Robbilliard in Griffith and he too said fogged in. It was fogged in as far as my UHF radio could transmit and receive. Except Morundah. A little island in the sea of fog. Well the sun will be up soon and it will dissipate I told myself. But Morundah was getting smaller and smaller so the only decision I could logically make was land there. I checked out the streets of this tiny town, population maybe 30 and noted the power wires. I made an approach and landed under one wire. A woman I had once met took pity on me and took me to her home where I waited in comfort to the fog to clear. It did so at 4 in the afternoon. 9 hours after I landed. Fuel wouldn't have endured that long. I got away in a 300 foot cloud base. Never become too familiar with fog or under estimate it's hazard.


The above story happened years ago but was written only about 3 weeks ago. I continue today, 10th Aug 2018.

I was driving past Morundah on Tuesday and thought it be a good idea to call by just for a look and maybe I’d even get to speak to the kind woman who sheltered me on that foggy morning.
Well the town has changed and not for the better. There’s no money there and houses are now quite dilapidated. Many small agricultural towns have gone in a simular way but perhaps not as badly as Morundah. I spoke to a couple of blokes working on a motor car. The bloke a little bit past middle age had grown up in Tocumwal which is where I live. He can well remember the aeroplane landing here in Morundah . He also spoke of his son living in the US and flying for United. The younger bloke aged mid thirties grew up here. He said he was 5 when that incident occurred. He didn’t remember it but his folks had told him. The kindly woman had passed which made me sorry I hadn’t stopped by years before and spoken to her.
I have a love for dogs. Good dogs, working dogs and fun dogs as indeed my hound Woofa was. He provided me much pleasure and gave me a reason to get out of bed when I wasn’t working. I frequently tell my wife Patsy that when I arrived home Woofa would wag his tail and not his tongue. Well the older man had a hound. A Kelpie cross. A fun dog. It chased shadows, literally and barked vigorously at them. It had me entertained for quite a while and I left humoured.
I enjoyed talking to those two blokes. Aren’t farming and rural people great. Friendly and honest in their thoughts. Being a crop pilot I have enjoyed working and mixing with them for a working life time. I always feel comfortable with them.
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Last edited by woofa.express; 08-11-2018 at 02:52 AM.
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