Small private aircraft are a noisy nuisance, and frankly I am fed up.
So many of us have chosen to live on the Olympic Peninsula for the peace, quiet, and natural beauty of the area.
Whether you grew up here, or moved here from out of town, the sublime serenity of the mountains, forests, and streams all around us is central to the rhythms of so many of our lives.
Yet for some reason unfathomable to me, we allow selfish hobbyist pilots free reign to trample that tranquility.
Why should it continue to be so?
Their fun quite simply comes at the expense of all the rest of us.
I’m sure the view is beautiful up there, and I don’t doubt flying is fun, but when they spend every single sunny afternoon blaring over our property my wife and I can barely hear ourselves think.
This noise pollution drives away birds, deer, and other wildlife in addition to being just generally stressful.
Sometimes it feels like despite living in the woods, we’d have more quiet if we lived right next to I-5.
Neighbors have expressed similar sentiments to me a number of times, particularly a veteran whose PTSD is exacerbated by plane and helicopter noise.
We’re all sick of it, the noise and the entitlement it belies.
You wouldn’t let a bunch of strangers ride dirt bikes and four wheelers all across your property making a ruckus every time the sun comes out, would you?
Buck Saltare
Port Angeles