I have never flown a plane but I knew an old guy who built and flew his own planes (little ones). He told me one time that any monkey could fly one but the taking off and landing was what took time and practice to learn. And I have also heard that the way the pilot landed that one is the same way you should try to land no matter what you were landing on (tops of trees in the woods or whatever). In other words, try to land just like you would on a runway. Easier said than done in a lot of circumstances but he had a wide river and a LOT of flying time. It was good to see how well he did.