Had a very serene flight with friends. The goal was to see the Northern Lights but nature had other plans. Kurt, Kayla, Nicole and I flew north at midnight searching for a clear area that had less urban lighting. We found an area west of Springfield and flew west from there at 8500ft.

I darkened the cabin as much as possible as we all hoped to see a glimmer of the Aurora. After 40 minutes of looking we turned back south for home.

Unfortunately, nature had other plans and did not give us a show. We did see a few flashes to the northeast from distant thunderstorms though. After returning home, I discovered that the Aurora was less intense and further north than the previous night.

I was happy to share such a beautiful night with friends. There were a few times that we seemed to be motionless in the darkness. The stars were much brighter and numerous than we are used to. Which gave a deep space feel to parts of the flight.

On the way back, ATC advised us of some low clouds that had moved into our destination and gave us a lot of leeway to get around and below it. Once we were clear of the clouds, I followed the riverfront back to Downtown. Kayla commented on how smooth the flight was from takeoff to landing which was nice to hear. Our total flight time was about 2 hours but it seemed to go by very quickly. I look forward to the next time!