Gifts of an Eagle
  • Home
  • The Book & the Film
    • Shop
  • About
    • Ed Durden
    • Kent Durden
  • Archives
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Guest Book

Planes on the Beach

6/28/2013

0 Comments

 
Ed Durden and plane 1945Ed and plane - 1945
About the only thing Ed and Kent liked as much as eagles, hawks and wildlife was planes. Although Kent never learned to fly a plane, Ed, his brother and his best friend and brother-in-law, Wayne, all flew planes beginning around 1940, I believe.

Ed even built his first plane, maybe before the 1940's. He and Wayne built it from a kit and then actually got in it and flew it! That's brave!

Ed used to tell stories of his early days with the planes before the war. He would park it right on the beach at Moss Landing or Pismo, California and take people for ride for 25 cents. They'd fly around and then he would land right on the beach again. Ed liked to tell the story of a woman who paid for a plane ride with him one summer day and then proceeded to scream endlessly and strangle him - holding on tight to his neck while he flew because she was so scared. He didn't know if he'd ever make it out alive.

I saw this picture in the National Geographic archives recently and it reminded me of Ed's beach plane rides and his stories. Although this image is from Germany and from 1928, I figure it looked a little like this.

Picture
0 Comments

Welcome to the New Site!

6/16/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
As a gift for my father, Kent and my grandpa, Ed, I created a new website for Gifts of an Eagle and am happy to launch it today - on Father's Day.

Please take a look around. There isn't too much new except design and layout, but I will continue to add new items from the archives. I have so many awesome things.

Thanks so much to all of you who have written to me or posted on Facebook and shared your experiences and history with Gifts of an Eagle. I love hearing your stories and I am so thankful when you pass on your love of this amazing story. As I have said many times, even growing up with it, I am still amazed at the story my grandfather and father were a part of with that majestic bird.

Happy Father's day, Dad and Grandpa!

3 Comments

    The Gifts blog

    This is where you will find news, new images from the archives and other Gifts of an eagle related items.

    Archives

    May 2016
    September 2015
    January 2015
    August 2014
    February 2014
    September 2013
    June 2013

    Categories

    All
    Photos
    Planes

    RSS Feed

copyright ©  2022 Gifts of an Eagle