Part Deux - You have to be a little bit mad!
My biggest problem this year is going to be range. I have a lot of ground, and even more ocean, to cover and even though the better part of three months seems like a lot of time - it ain’t.
So, I want something that has decent endurance & reasonably quick would be nice, is easy to fly and I have some familiarity with the aircraft.
Keeping in mind Crawl → Walk → Run
This aircraft, like me, is a little bit backwards and coincidentally it is the 2nd X-Plane payware aircraft I bought.
My next dilemma is which way do I go. Flying ‘West’ through Asia and then Europe would be about 4,000NM shorter? And, there aren’t a lot of options for getting across the Pacific. An Easterly route would have at least one >2,000NM leg to the Americas (Hawaii to the Continental US or Easter Island to Chile).
I might have one twin that could probably do that (albeit slowly)… but!
Hmmm. decisions, decisions. 
Finally an inkling of a plan… I’m in the Southern hemisphere and Svalbard is in the Northern Hemisphere.
How about instead of East or West, I fly North?
It is only 14,000 NM (plus change).
I guess there’s a fine line between crazy and inspired? 
But at least I have a rough idea of where I am going now… Other than ‘have to be at ENSB by Christmas’.
North it is then. Next stop YBRK.
Not quite MSFS standard, but there is some half decent ortho for XP11, and it is free:
Autopilot on, feet up, just relax and watch the scenery go by. I love these Garmin thingies.
The town of Scone.
The only place I know of that is named after a High Tea staple.
Actually, the town initially started as the village of Redbank in 1826 and in 1831 Hugh Cameron, a Scottish descendant put forward the name. It was gazetted as Scone in 1837 and shares the name with the home of Scottish Kings and the site of their coronation.
Tamworth
Home of a quite famous Country Music Festival. Keith Urban, you may know him as Mr Nicole Kidman, got his start here.
Crossing the border into Queensland (Great Dividing Range off to the East)
There is an old saying: ‘Welcome to Queensland, set your clocks back 10 years’ 
And it is a rather nice aircraft. If I was rich and actually had a PPL, one of these would be high on my list.
Chinchilla
Not actually named after a small furry mammal, but believed to be derived from the aboriginal word “tintinchillla” or “Jinchilla” indicating cypress pine possibly recorded by explorer Ludwig Leichardt.
Time to think about my descent
Turning final and why has it suddenly got verwy, verwy quiet (you need to do the Elmer Fudd voice)?
Did I run out of fuel?.. I think I can make it.
Not quite. The perimeter fence makes a good crash barrier, but at least I ended up on the runway - That counts as a landing doesn’t it?
I think I need a tow
Anyhoo. Here I am in Rockhampton.
Rockhampton. I have driven through there a lot but never had a chance to stop and have a look around. Beef capitol of Australia and largest number of ‘Big’ cattle statues in the world.
Aussies are big on their ‘Big’ statues.
https://www.qantas.com/travelinsider/en/explore/australia/big-banana-merino-and-other-big-things-in-australia.html
That was a long flight and I’m hungry. I wonder if I can get a decent steak around here?
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