Marcel McNicoll, co-proprietor of Le Bleu Ridge and long-time aviation aficionado, has his birthday on 30 July. This weekend, I flew down to Charlottesville with his daughter Léa and friend Melinda to celebrate the occasion.
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The plan (which Léa had been working on for months) was to land at Eagle’s Nest Airport on Saturday afternoon and surprise Marcel with a birthday flight. Unfortunately, deteriorating weather over the Blue Ridge Mountains forced us to divert to Charlottesville Airport instead. Postponing the birthday flight for the moment, we spent Saturday tasting at Afton Mountain Vineyards, Hill Top Farm (where we saw a massive, purple stretch pick-up), and Bold Rock Cidery, and Flying Fox Vineyard; experimenting with archery, and enjoying one of Danielle’s famously amazing birthday dinners, complete with chicken, steak, shrimp, salad, rice, and a delicious, made-from-scratch cheesecake.
On Sunday, contrary to all expectations, the weather was beautiful. Marcel was able to take his birthday flight, which included a bird’s-eye tour of Afton, a good look at the beautiful Le Bleu Ridge from above, and a survey of the Wintergreen Resort golf course. After a few times around the pattern at Charlottesville, the successful birthday flight was over.
After the flight, Léa, Melinda, and I took Muffin for a walk to Edible Landscaping, where we were attacked by butterflies. Then we said our goodbyes, and after a bit of impromptu airplane yoga, headed home.
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