I planned to fly valley A. But when I got to the choosing point, the path to valley A looked awfully forested. I turned aside.

This is one of the pleasures of flying low and slow in mountainous country. I'm constantly threading my way across the terrain like someone crossing a stream on stones. Examine, choose. Examine, choose. Don't like the choices? Climb and get new ones. I'm exploring the land, which I've loved doing all my life. At bottom, what I'm doing today is no different than exploring Peoria on my bike at age 10 or exploring the Thousand Islands in a little outboard at age 12.