The Peru Gazette

By Adele Douglas

Ever since I heard about Cape Air’s service to Boston I’ve been hoping to go.  A couple of weeks ago I made an agenda with kid friendly activities and booked the flights.  This was to be a mother and daughter outing, as dad doesn’t like to fly, especially on small planes.  When we got to Plattsburgh International Airport (PIA) and looked at the size of the plane I could see why.  I didn’t realize they were so small.  Cessna 402’s are twin propeller planes that hold nine passengers, and not much else.  Emily and I got the last two seats, very cozy, in the back with the luggage stored behind us in a net; smaller bags were stored in the wings. The inside was a little spare and well-used and when airborne it was noisy.  However, the flight was generally very smooth and thanks to a tailwind we arrived at Logan International Airport in about an hour.

Our visit to Boston was very nice, hampered somewhat by a cold that I thought Emily had shaken-off but obviously hadn’t.  We stayed at the Harbourside Hotel, a renovated warehouse with lots of exposed brick and wood and in a very central location.  We could walk to the Children’s Museum, the Colonial Theatre (a beautiful old Victorian rococo gem with gilt everywhere), Faneuil Hall, and across the street to the New England Aquarium, where we spent hours communing with the penguins, harbor seals, jellies, sea turtles and other assorted marine life.  There’s also an IMAX theatre attached to the aquarium (biggest screen in the Northeast) showing a number of 3D movies.  On our last morning we had breakfast at the incredibly posh, yet surprisingly reasonable, Oceana Restaurant, part of the Marriott Long Wharf Hotel.  Overlooking Boston Harbor we sat in comfort, enjoying our meal as we watched the ferries go back and forth and the big planes take off from Logan, about one every thirty seconds.  Then we got ready to take off in our small plane.

The planes may be small but the service is big.  The people at Cape Air are wonderful.  Because Emily was sick I changed flight days and times more than once and they were endlessly accommodating. Since our initial booking was still in their system they even called us at home to make sure we weren’t missing our flight.  As we waited to walk to the plane to fly out of Boston a ground crew gentleman said he was sorry for the delay but that they were waiting for another passenger and they were trying to reach him on his cell phone. He arrived a few minutes later.  Typically in these situations customers are just left to wait with no explanation or apology.  As we boarded the plane I mentioned to the pilot that Emily’s ears had hurt on the descent to Boston and she said she’d make the descent to Plattsburgh less steep.  She did and then checked with me as we approached Plattsburgh to see how Emily was doing – just fine thanks.  She also brought me our bag in the airport terminal!

So, even though small planes take some getting used to, I’d do this again.  I enjoyed being able to see more of the countryside, being able to look out the front window, and, since we sat right up front on the way back, trying to figure out what all the dials and gauges are for on the control panel.  I can say with some assurance that we cruised back at 8,000 feet, at 165 knots and in a northerly, 320 degree direction (maybe). By the way, even though we were buffeted with wind on our approach to PIA and seemed to be coming in somewhat sideways, the pilot made a perfect landing.