The aircraft
She is a 1974 Piper Cherokee Archer — four seats, one propeller, and a cruise speed a determined car could argue with. Ed and Todd bought her together in 2023 and have split her between Lawrence and Laconia ever since.
Her name is not an accident. It is, however, the only unserious thing about her.
Data plate
- Manufacturer
- Piper Aircraft Corporation
- Model
- PA-28-180 Cherokee Archer
- Year
- 1974
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4A · 180 hp
- Registration
- N56970
- Seats
- 4
- Based
- KLWM · KLCI
- Co-owned since
- 2023
B18 Alton Bay, New Hampshire
The runway melts in April
Each winter, once the ice on Lake Winnipesaukee is thick enough to trust, a runway gets plowed onto it. Alton Bay is the only FAA-recognized ice runway in the lower 48 — open for a few weeks a year, and closed the moment it stops being a good idea.
Every photograph on this page was taken there.
The landing
Alton Bay Ice Runway · 14 February 2026
