Left Portland for helicopter launch site – Popham Beach State Park – at 0430 with plenty of daylight, no headlights needed!
Seguin Island fog horn sounding two separate times during lift.
I wonder who’s radioed it to sound this bright, sunny day?
(Subsequently learned that it defaults to the “on” position when it’s broken. Brilliant way to keep mariners safe in fog!)
First lift @ 0745 – solar panel rack
Rover, red rover
Piping Plover tracks all over!!
2nd lift @ 0755 – solar panel rack
3rd lift @ 0805 – solar battery box
4th lift @ 0815 – another solar panel rack
5th lift @ 0825 – new refrigerator airborne!
And you thought refrigerators couldn’t fly, ha!
6th lift @ 0835 – a third solar panel rack
Returned with netted load from island
7th lift @ 0850 – shrink-wrapped pallet of solar batteries
Returned with a 2nd netted load from the island followed by a pilot pit stop landing.
8th lift @ 0905 – another shrink-wrapped pallet of ???
Helicopter briefly landed again as preps for next load continued
9th lift @ 0920 – shrink-wrapped pallet #3, contents still unknown from a safe distance
10th lift @ 0930 – a 4th shrink-wrapped mystery pallet
A second brief landing for refueling.
11th lift @ 0950 – 1st shrink-wrapped pallet of solar batteries
Returned with 3rd load from island, this one bagged
12th lift @ 1000 – 2nd shrink-wrapped pallet of solar batteries
Told that carbon foam batteries means no generator needed this summer. I’m not from MO, but show me!
13th lift @ 1010 – new composting toilets plus heavy-duty square woven nylon bag carrying summer long provisions!
Returned with 4th load from island: old fridge and freezer
14th lift @ 1025 – yessir yessir three bags full…of the balance of our provisions plus two – six gallon containers of potable water – back-up for this year’s water filter – plus a bag o’ bedding.
15th lift @ 1030 – two more nylon bags with plastic tubs
Another returned netfull plus two bags, 5th back load
16th lift @ 1045 – 1st reshrink-wrapped pallet of concrete and forms
2nd refueling stop
17th lift @ 1100 – 2nd reshrink-wrapped pallet of concrete, no forms
18th and last lift @ 1115 – Concrete bags reloaded from failing shrink-wrapped pallet into two nylon bags.
C’est tout!
Wow!