PacMan's Comm X-Country with pics

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PacMan4x4

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What a great feeling to finally get this done...did my long (SOLO <sarcasm>) commercial cross country today. Ended up going from Elmendorf AFB to King Salmon. I had to cross the Alaska Range to get from the cook inlet area to the western side of the state. I made my way from Elmendorf and passed through Lake Clark Pass and straight to King Salmon. On the way back home I stopped in Illiamna to gas up and filed another flight plan before heading back through the mountains to return home. It was 5.7 hours logged into the ol' log book and was right around 600 miles total distance. This was the first time I had been across the Alaska Range to the other side, so it was nice to have made the trip. I took the liberty of attaching some photos so ya'll could see what I was looking at quite a bit today. Hope ya'll enjoy.
 
Awesome pics:rawk: I am still having a hard time deciding whether I want to do my PPL training in the Palmer/Anchorage area, or up in Fairbanks. Decisions, decisions. Anyways, nice to see another part of the state from the air.:)
 
Haven't been up to Fairbanks flying...yet. In my biased opinion, I like the Anchorage area...there is so much to see that is so close. But, while you are training, you aren't going to have to worry so much about the scenery. The Anchorage area would offer some crazy airspace to work in and out of with having the Class C mixed with different segments (merrill field, Elmendorf, Lake Hood, and Anc Int') plus the Part 93 special airspace rules. As long as you are flying somewhere....that's all that matters. Wish I had a nice sunny day that Aloft had on his x-country in Utah yesterday. It looked beautiful for his flight. Don't you have anywhere closer to do your training ASpilot2be? When do you plan on starting up?
 
Just curious, what kind of temps do y'all have up there nowadays? It looks very cold in those pics (FL boy, Texas born and bred, saying this). Great looking country to do a flight in though.
 
I wish I had somewhere closer. I tried the only flight school in Southeast, but I dont think I could stand the instructor much longer. So Anchorage or Fairbanks is next closest. I would start training next February.
 
TX...it's been sitting in the high 40's to low 50's for the last couple of weeks I've been home (Anchorage) for vacation. Was a helluva lot warmer last year at this time. It was only like 35 degrees at 4000 feet while I was screamin' through the pass in the ol' 172...not too bad.

ASpilot2be....have you been looking into any schools in particular for either location?
 
Great pictures. Love the mountains. Something tells me I have missed somethings in flight training. All we have around here is lots of flat land.
 
Thanks Chinook....
Shooter....the one thing I can say I got plenty of during training was the scenery. I enjoy the flights up into the mountains flying over glacier fields... I know I'll be leaving here someday and will miss it when I'm gone. I actually do miss flying here since my recent year and a half of flying has been in Korea....it just doesn't compare to AK flying.
 
Thanks for sharing! It's a great feeling going through the pass, isn't it?
You posted a picture of my wife's home town, Port Alsworth (the one with two runways).

I can't wait to get up there in June. We'll be doing some flying, fishing, and even some fly fishing!
 
PacMan4x4 said:
Thanks Chinook....
Shooter....the one thing I can say I got plenty of during training was the scenery. I enjoy the flights up into the mountains flying over glacier fields... I know I'll be leaving here someday and will miss it when I'm gone. I actually do miss flying here since my recent year and a half of flying has been in Korea....it just doesn't compare to AK flying.
Click to expand...

Hey pacman, would you recommend someone moving to Alaska to pursue fixed/ rotary wing flying? Heard the living is expensive and sparse there, but is the nature and beauty worth it?
 
SkyWChris....yep, flew over Port Alsworth on the way out and coming back. As I was flying over I thought to myself....lucky bastages...a community with two landing strips, airplanes in the front yards and in the water, only a few houses, and in an isolated area where it has beautiful scenery. Some day I'll be able to live somewhere like that. I'll be heading back to Korea on 3 Jun so I'll miss ya when you come up....would've been cool to hook up with you. I'll be back in Anchorage for good in October, so maybe on your next trip up we could meet up somewhere.

Chinook...there is a lot of flying ops up here, especially during the spring/summer with tourist season. There are several operators around the area that move freight/pax around the villages and back into Anchorage all year long. One place I was looking at as a potential job in a few years, would take me out to the bush for 20 days on and 10 off... If you wanted to fly choppers, then there are several sighseeing outfits also. Housing is expensive, which is one of the reasons the wife and I will probably leave AK after I retire....and houses go quick.
 
MERIT....some of the pics in the valley look worse than it was. It was a cloudy day in that area with bases at like 4,500 ft. I wouldn't have trekked through there in marginal conditions...especially with it being my first time through that particular pass. On the pics looking down through the valley...it looks worse in the pic than it actually was....had a good 10+ vis through there.
 
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