The emerald jewel of the Lower Forty Eight. My home is in Friday Harbor Washington in The San Juan Islands. We’re a quick hop by boat or plane from Victoria British Columbia. I spend six months and a day here. (Taxman, note.)

My other home is in Marana AZ. The Four Corners (UT, CO, AZ, NM) offers an abundance of sublime scenery. I spend five months and twenty nine days here. (Taxman, note.)

Home Base #3 - Travel. That constant urge takes me and my wife, Carol Merrifield, away. That’s her next to me at a castle near Amsterdam.

The first plane I owned. I flew this highly capable plane all over North America — up to The Yukon and up and down The Atlantic and Pacific Coasts. I crossed most major mountain ranges in the United States including the Appalachian Mountains, the Rockies, the Cascades, and the Sierras.

Smooth, sleek, and quiet. This airplane had a turbo diesel engine that burned jet fuel. This was my trusty platform for obtaining my instrument rating. Over the five years I owned this plane I flew it around Canada, The Lower Forty Eight, and Mexico. The forty foot wingspan gave it glider-like performance.

Seeking a more nimble flying experience, I switched to this two-seater. It has a powerful Rotax 916 fuel injected engine and could reach 23,000’. (I’ve never taken it up there.) It’s capable of long cross-country flights and it’s nimble enough to fly into rugged back country airstrips. It’s the best of both worlds.