Sep 5, 2022 | Daily Image 2022, Flying to Alaska
Flying to Alaska | Lethbridge Customs After landing at Lethbridge, the first order of business is, of course, clearing customs. It was relatively easy. After the paperwork, the customs agent came out to the plane to make sure I had survival gear. They then issued me a permit to be displayed on the inside of the windshield. Thunderstorms blocked my route northwest to the Alaskan Highway. It was a good day and a nice night in Lethbridge.
Today’s Highlights… The takeoff at Williston made for some excitement in the cockpit due to the rising terrain just to the west of the airport. Also, clearing Canadian customs in an airplane for the first time was interesting.
For a more concise story see, Flying to Alaska | a 7 Image Story. And I post an image everyday at hankconrad.com.
Details…
| 7/11/1995 | Day 2 | Williston ND ➟ Havre MT➟ Lethbridge ALTA |
| Photo Gear | Minolta XG-9 SLR, Nikon Zoom Touch 500 35mm point & shoot, and Minolta IX-Date VE TIS2000 compact point & shoot with Minolta 50mm f1.7, Minolta 135mm f2.8 , and Vivitar75-300mm f4.5-5.6 zoom lenses. And, of course, a flash and tons of film! |
| Activities | Fly across Montana, file Intl. Flight Plan at Havre, dodge thunderstorms south of the Canadian border and clear customs at Lethbridge. |
| From | To | Route / Wx | Hours |
| ISN | HVR | Williston west through northern Montana to Havre, MT. Light chop. | 2.8 |
| HVR | YQL | Filed International Flight Plan. Filed HVR,CTB,YQL but CBs blocked the route to Cut Bank, MT. Avoiding the thunderstorms after leaving Havre, flew back east, then north, then west just south of the Canadian border to V21 to Lethbridge, ALTA. | 1.3 |
| Wx | Mostly sunny nice day until reaching thunderstorms in western Montana. | |
Sep 4, 2022 | Daily Image 2022, Flying to Alaska
Flying to Alaska | Montana Canada Border After yesterday’s late night, I slept in a bit, ate breakfast, and was ready for takeoff on runway 29 at 10:15am MDT. Temperature at Williston was still quite warm, 80º F. The field elevation is 1,982 ft MSL, yet density altitude calculated to 4,159 ft MSL. Although the wind was west at 8 knots, the takeoff roll took nearly the entire runway and climb rate was very slow. Flying across the high plains of northern Montana, the wheat fields become very noticeable. There’s really no way to identify the border line between the USA and Canada; it’s just wheat fields as far as the eye can see.
Stopped at Havre to file an international VFR flight plan into Canada and check the weather. Widely scattered thunderstorms were clearly visible to the west. Havre was nice though: 75º F and west wind at 15 knots. The field elevation was 2,592 ft MSL making the density altitude 4377 ft MSL. After dodging a couple large thunderstorms, Lethbridge finally started to get larger in the windshield. Clearing customs was a breeze after following the instructions from Alaska Airmen’s Association Logbook and Canadian Customs. They did a quick check of the paperwork followed by a quick check of the airplane and I had the green sticker taped to the inside of the left windshield. Today’s procedures are likely much different. Another weather check confirmed more thunderstorms north along my intended route of flight. So, time to stop flying for the day and enjoy the night.
Today’s Highlights… The takeoff at Williston made for some excitement in the cockpit due to the rising terrain just to the west of the airport.
For a more concise story see, Flying to Alaska | a 7 Image Story. And I post an image everyday at hankconrad.com.
Details…
| 7/11/1995 | Day 2 | Williston ND ➟ Havre MT➟ Lethbridge ALTA |
| Photo Gear | Minolta XG-9 SLR, Nikon Zoom Touch 500 35mm point & shoot, and Minolta IX-Date VE TIS2000 compact point & shoot with Minolta 50mm f1.7, Minolta 135mm f2.8 , and Vivitar75-300mm f4.5-5.6 zoom lenses. And, of course, a flash and tons of film! |
| Activities | Fly across Montana, file Intl Flight Plan at Havre, dodge thunderstorms south of Canada. |
| From | To | Route / Wx | Hours |
| ISN | HVR | Williston west through northern Montana to Havre, MT. Light chop. | 2.8 |
| HVR | YQL | Filed International Flight Plan. Filed HVR,CTB,YQL but CBs blocked the route to Cut Bank, MT. Avoiding the thunderstorms after leaving Havre, flew back east, then north, then west just south of the Canadian border to V21 to Lethbridge, ALTA. | 1.3 |
| Wx | Mostly sunny nice day until reaching thunderstorms in western Montana. | |
Sep 3, 2022 | Daily Image 2022, Flying to Alaska
Flying to Alaska | Mississippi River Crossing Finally, I’m off to Alaska; departing Aurora Municipal Airport at 2:25pm CDT with a southwest wind at 10 knots and 86º F temperature. And, it’s hot, very hot; 75º F outside at 6,500 feet. Crossing the Mississippi River with the sun beaming through the windshield, it’s boiling hot in the cockpit. On the ground at Sioux Falls, 89º F actually felt cooler than the cockpit.
After refueling, the takeoff to the northwest toward Miles, MT again seemed hotter. Thunderstorms blocked my route to Miles so I turned north toward Williston, ND. The thunderstorms stayed 30-50 miles off my left wing. They’re beautiful to watch in the distance. The light show seemed more intense as afternoon faded into night. By the time I arrived at Williston at 10:30pm, I was pretty tired. Still, the long day felt good; on my way to Alaska.
Today’s Highlights… After a long day flying, my thoughts before bedtime reflect on today’s high points. Although it was a late start, actually starting on my flying adventure was the highlight of the day. Also, the light shows from the thunderstorms to the west were most impressive. Flying at night with a little weather turns a relatively boring flight into an exciting experience. Today’s Learnings: Better late than never!
For a more concise story see, Flying to Alaska | a 7 Image Story. And I post an image everyday at hankconrad.com.
Details…
| 7/10/1995 | Day 1 | Aurora➟Sioux Falls➟Williston |
| Photo Gear | Minolta XG-9 SLR, Nikon Zoom Touch 500 35mm point & shoot, and Minolta IX-Date VE TIS2000 compact point & shoot with Minolta 50mm f1.7, Minolta 135mm f2.8 , and Vivitar75-300mm f4.5-5.6 zoom lenses. And, of course, a flash and tons of film! |
| Activities | Mostly flying plus taking a few photographs through the windshield and side windows! |
| From | To | Route / Wx | Hours |
| ARR | FSD | Northwest Direct Sioux Falls, SD Hot/Light Chop | 3.9 |
| FSD | ISN | Northwest until unable Miles, then north direct Williston, ND Hot/Smooth | 3.6 |
| Wx | Hot! Hot! Hot! with evening thunderstorms to the west of my route. | |
Sep 2, 2022 | Daily Image 2022, Flying to Alaska
Flying to Alaska | Piper Cherokee Panel By today’s standard, it was a pretty basic panel. Dual Navcom with Glideslope, DME, ADF, Audio panel/Marker beacon, Transponder, LORAN, Moving Map, Stormscope, Auto-pilot coupled, Electric Trim, Engine Monitor, Voltage/Ampere Monitor, Standby Vacuum, Pitot Heat, Vertical Card Compass. For a more concise story see, Flying to Alaska | a 7 Image Story. Note: I post an image everyday at hankconrad.com.
Details…
| 7/10/1995 | Day 1 | Aurora➟Sioux Falls➟Williston |
| Photo Gear | Minolta XG-9 SLR, Nikon Zoom Touch 500 35mm point & shoot, and Minolta IX-Date VE TIS2000 compact point & shoot with Minolta 50mm f1.7, Minolta 135mm f2.8 , and Vivitar75-300mm f4.5-5.6 zoom lenses. And, of course, a flash and tons of film! |
| Activities | Mostly flying plus taking a few photographs through the windshield and side windows! |
| From | To | Route / Wx | Hours |
| ARR | FSD | Northwest Direct Sioux Falls, SD Hot/Light Chop | 3.9 |
| FSD | ISN | Northwest until unable Miles, then north direct Williston, ND Hot/Smooth | 3.6 |
| Wx | Hot! Hot! Hot! with evening thunderstorms to the west of my route. | |
Sep 1, 2022 | Daily Image 2022, Flying to Alaska
Flying to Alaska | Piper Cherokee 235 For this trip, I flew a Piper Cherokee 235 with a fixed pitch propeller. It cruises at 133 knots and burns about 12 gallons per hour. The panel included King radios, an Apollo Loran, and a simple 2 axis autopilot. Nope, no GPS; the trip occurred before GPS became common. It was IFR certified and current as was the pilot, but my intention was to fly the entire trip VFR. I Followed Roads once into Canada; specifically the Alaska Highway to Alaska then state highways and roads once in Alaska. Oh yes, like most light airplanes, it did not have air conditioning.
Why fly to Alaska? My company offered a sabbatical after 10 years service; an extra 8 weeks vacation taken at one time. Time to recharge the batteries and get ready for the next 10 years. What better way to recharge than to fly; perhaps, a flying adventure. My criteria was simple; fly somewhere unusual, see something new, and make the trip a bit difficult, at least, for a flat land flyer like me. To be clear, it’s all about the flying; flying first, sightseeing second. So, I chose Alaska; America’s last frontier. Flying to Alaska | Piper Cherokee Panel By today’s standard, it was a pretty basic panel. Dual Navcom with Glideslope, DME, ADF, Audio panel/Marker beacon, Transponder, LORAN, Moving Map, Stormscope, Auto-pilot coupled, Electric Trim, Engine Monitor, Voltage/Ampere Monitor, Standby Vacuum, Pitot Heat, Vertical Card Compass. For a more concise story see, Flying to Alaska | a 7 Image Story. Note: I post an image everyday at hankconrad.com.
Details…
| 7/10/1995 | Day 1 | Aurora➟Sioux Falls➟Williston |
| Photo Gear | Minolta XG-9 SLR, Nikon Zoom Touch 500 35mm point & shoot, and Minolta IX-Date VE TIS2000 compact point & shoot with Minolta 50mm f1.7, Minolta 135mm f2.8 , and Vivitar75-300mm f4.5-5.6 zoom lenses. And, of course, a flash and tons of film! |
| Activities | Mostly flying plus taking a few photographs through the windshield and side windows! |
| From | To | Route / Wx | Hours |
| ARR | FSD | Northwest Direct Sioux Falls, SD Hot/Light Chop | 3.9 |
| FSD | ISN | Northwest until unable Miles, then north direct Williston, ND Hot/Smooth | 3.6 |
| Wx | Hot! Hot! Hot! with evening thunderstorms to the west of my route. | |
