At 11:00am the RTW trip final took flight!!!! It was exciting to taxi out knowing that the moment of getting this adventure underway was just ahead.
The morning had not been without adventure. Shortly after arriving at Boundary Bay the head of the flight school found me having breakfast. Apparently two people wanted to see me in his office.
It turned out those two people were an RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) and a Canadian Immigration department officer. They had noticed the US registered plane parked for a few days and this triggered a “routine” investigation. They had discovered and interpreted my FAA licenses as requiring a Canadian pilot on board when I flew in Canada . Their subsequent review of arrival records showed that I had flown alone from Portland to Kelowna . Why was there no Canadian pilot on board? Well, I am a Canadian pilot………and a US pilot too. No wonder they were confused.
Ready to start Round the World……..
The correct interpretation of the FAA license/endorsement is that I must have a valid Canadian pilot's license to fly under my FAA endorsement. We cleared up the issues quickly and everyone headed off with the RCMP and Canadian Immigration happy and wiser……..
Our friends at ProIFR and the tower controllers all wished us well and we departed and headed for Juneau , Alaska . The trip was very nice with clear skies all the way up the coast of British Columbia . As we approached Alaska solid cloud lay below us. We did a GPS instrument approach to the Juneau Airport . Down through the clouds knowing that mountains surrounded us. Having the Garmin 1000 provides such great situational awareness and makes these approaches much more comfortable; but still not to be taken for granted.
Clearing US customs and getting the airplane parked was easy taking less than one hour. Just follow the procedures for arrival by private aircraft………... If you come to Juneau I suggest parking at Coastal Fuels. Not fancy but super people who cannot do enough for you. They offered a free courtesy car and were slightly disappointed when we did not use it – because I don't have car insurance in North America .
Aside from the beauty of the Alaskan terrain (mountains, lakes and rivers) one of the most noticeable characteristics is the friendly and helpful attitude of the people. Everywhere we went we were treated nicely and it seemed difficult to get away from people who wanted to extend conversations endlessly – a nice problem for a change.
Juneau is a harbor for the very large cruise ships coming to Alaska . Four were in port when we arrived. We were quick to head over to the Twisted Fish restaurant for the best fish and chips in town.....had to get there before the “tourists” got hungry.
Next day we were off to Anchorage . The weather was not great for departure with rain, 1000' scattered clouds and 3000' ceilings. The departure procedure called for a 220 degree right turn after take off (lots of mountains here) to the initial NDB while maintaining a visual climb to 1500'. The weather was good enough for that and the departure was fun. Our requested flight level of 14,000 was authorized, right off the bat, so we took off and set the GPS and climb to get us up there fast. The Ovation likes that – so do I.
Nang Fah getting ready for departure from Juneau ……
The enroute forecast was better than it actually turned out to be. We were expecting solid cloud up to 12,000 and possible light icing from 5 to 12 thousand - but only in an area 100 miles northwest of Juneau . So the plan was to get up to 14,000 asap and get over the top of the cloud and icing. Nice idea but it didn't happen that way…….We encountered light icing while still in the initial climb. At 14,000 we were still in solid cloud and in and out of icing. (we do not have anti icing on the airplane) ATC gave us higher and it was up to 16,000' where we enjoyed a nice clear ride for a while. Then back into more cloud and heavier ice. Now noticeably building on the wings.
We had seen as area of much lower cloud well off to our left just as we entered the clouds at 16,000. With ice building, our request for a deviation was granted and we headed well off course, out over the ocean, to find clear air and relief from the icing.
This got us out of the ice but now we were flying, unplanned, 50 miles offshore with life jackets in the luggage compartment and survival suits packed in bags. If an emergency forced us to land in the water we could reach the life raft but in that cold Alaskan sea - it would have been a struggle. Lesson learned about flying around Alaska ; actually flying anywhere or anytime. Be ready for everything.
We eventually landed at Merrill Field with chunks of ice flying off the airplane as we descended.
Merrill is a very tricky field to find as it is small, right in the middle of town and there are 3 other larger airports in the vicinity. Set your GPS and trust it until you clearly see the runway for Merrill – you will be pretty close by the time you see it. You can easily be tempted to fly to the Air Force base which stands out about 2 miles North of Merrill; so hang in there until you are sure of the runway you are assigned to land on.
A new friend, Peter Brown, lives in Anchorage and flies out of Merrill field, suggested that we stay right on the airport grounds. Ace Fuels, a refueling and aircraft service company, recently built a few very nice rooms over their hanger. This doesn't sound very glamorous but it is a wonderful place to stay while tying down your airplane beside your bedroom.
Our room at Merrill Field…….better than a hotel!
You have a great view of the airport (which has no nighttime traffic) and a huge variety of private aircraft to look at out your window.Michelle, at Ace, is fantastic. She welcomed us enthusiastically and could not do enough to make our experience with them easy and fun.
After a good nights rest at Ace Fuel hanger we picked up our rented motor home and started touring Alaska.
First, we needed a brief stop to refill our oxygen bottle, which seemed impossible to do in Anchorage . Jeff Helmericks provided the oxygen from his facility in remote Palmer, Alaska . Jeff is one of the most knowledgeable aviators and mechanics that I have ever met. He has done several long and difficult polar flights and provided me with some interesting and helpful advice on Continental engine performance. Really enjoyed meeting you Jeff……..
View of the field from Ace Lodging…….
So on with the motor trip. We will be about 9 days traveling by motor home to the North and South of Anchorage. We have now been on the road 2 days and conclude this is the only way to see Alaska .
For the aviators/statisticians out there – on the first two legs we have flown 1339 nautical miles at an average ground speed of 172 K with varying wind conditions. Top speed has been 216 over the ground. We have not run the engine above 65% power settings in cruise and gas consumption has averaged 14.7 gph.
Camping by the river – first night out….
We have more pictures on the gallery. Please take a look…….more from Alaska later…….
Vancouver to Juneau and Juneau to Anchorage
Ready to start Round the World……..
