My First Drone Adventure with a Twist!

637. Own a Drone ✅

June 29th, 2024 — the day I finally crossed off a big item on my bucket list: owning and flying my very own drone! As someone who’s always admired the breath-taking aerial shots on Instagram and marvelled at the idea of seeing the world from a bird’s-eye view, this was a dream long in the making. But as with most new adventures, my first foray into the world of drones was a mix of excitement, anxiety, and, of course, a little bit of drama.

The Joy of First Flight

I can still remember the thrill of unboxing my shiny new drone, the sleek and futuristic gadget that promised to take me to new heights—literally! After a quick (okay, maybe not so quick) session with the manual and a few YouTube tutorials, I was ready to take it for a spin. The drone buzzed to life, and before I knew it, it was soaring above my parents homestead. There I was, a newbie pilot, feeling like a tech-savvy superhero in control of the skies.

But, as they say, with great power comes great responsibility—or in my case, great anxiety. As exhilarating as it was to pilot the drone, there was an underlying nervousness. What if I crash it? What if I lose it? What if it flies away and becomes a permanent resident of the sky?

The (Inevitable) Crash Landing

Unfortunately, my first-time flyer jitters proved justified. My drone adventure quickly took a nosedive—literally. While trying to manoeuvre through what I thought was a simple turn, I miscalculated, and before I could react, the drone was out of my sight and, worse, out of my control. I heard a distant crash, followed by an eerie silence. My heart sank as I realized my drone had gone down somewhere in the neighbour’s overgrown land.

The Hunt Through the Green

Determined to retrieve my new toy, I set off on a mini adventure, plunging into the thick, lush greenery of my neighbour's property. Picture this: tall grass up to my knees, tangled vines, thick spikes, and who knows what kind of critters lurking about. It was like a scene out of a jungle expedition movie—minus the machete.

The hunt was tougher than I expected. I pushed through the vegetation, my adrenaline pumping as I searched for any sign of my drone. And then, like some kind of cruel joke, I tripped over a hidden root, scraping my knee badly on a cute down tree trunk. Ouch! But giving up wasn’t an option. After what felt like an eternity (okay, maybe 10 minutes), I spotted it—my little drone, sitting there like a lost puppy, trapped up in the branches of a tree, waiting for me to bring it home.

Lessons Learned from the Sky

I limped back, drone in hand, bleeding but victorious. My first drone flight didn’t go as smoothly as I’d imagined, but it taught me a valuable lesson: it’s never too late to try something new, and failing is never failure—only quitting is. Yes, I crashed my drone. Yes, I lost it (temporarily). And yes, I got a nasty scrape. But at the end of the day, I took the leap, I learned from the experience, and I came out the other side with a story to tell—and more importantly, with my drone still intact (hallelujah).

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The Maginon QC-720SE drone, does not have a very good camera, I'll admit. Despite it saying 720p on the box the image displayed on the Wi-Fi connected app installed on my iPhone reminded me of those shitty shots we all used to take on our 5mp camera phones. Not incredible! However, the drone itself is rather sturdy and from my experience a great beginner pilots experiment. Until I become a better flyer this drone works great.

So, if you’ve got something on your bucket list that you’ve been putting off, take this as your sign to go for it. There might be a few crashes and scrapes along the way, but those are just part of the adventure. The skies are waiting—go take your shot!