Flying Adventures on the Rock River Trail Air Route

Student pilot and flight instructor found navigating along the Rock River by air was a fun lesson in pilotage!

Both student and instructor will receive our 320-Mile Patch and were added to our 320-Mile Wall of Fame! Learn more about the Rock River Trail Air Route here.

Submitted by student pilot Alex Leites: Student pilot, Alex Leites, and flight instructor, Alex Bond, took off in a Piper Cherokee aircraft on a clear summer morning from Davenport Municipal Airport in Davenport, Iowa. We circled around where the Rock River flows into the Mississippi River and then continued northeast. Along the way, we passed over several river towns and cities as the river snaked into Wisconsin, even spotting the Black Hawk Statue in Oregon, Illinois, from 5,500 feet. Arriving and circling over Waupun County Park in Waupun, Wisconsin, where the Rock River Water Trail begins, we completed our two-hour journey above the river and then proceeded to land at Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin. Getting a bird’s-eye view of the entire 320-mile length of the majestic Rock River was a memorable experience for us both.

Rock River Trail Air Route
Date started and finished: June 18, 2022
Alex Leites – Bettendorf, IA [36 years old] Alex Bond – Davenport, IA [26 years old]