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Iditarod or bust

Noon...snow in Fairbanks started. Delta Jct VFR but east winds G30 as usual with the Tanana River jet. Tok cam looks ok...Northway VFR with lower east winds. SW of Tnana River hills snow/fog.

Gary
 
Just got on, and checking cameras going into the Copper Basin.

Unless you know that country I would be holding in Tok! Lots of miles out there with nothing, and it all looks the same but the odd hill stands up in front.

Heck, Tok is only 350 from Anchorage. Have some Pizza and enjoy.
 
Yahoo! I cleared customs at Northway at 9am this morning. Currently in Tok and plan to be here for a day or maybe two.

Celebrating my arrival with a little day drinking. An Alaskan Amber none the less.
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More to follow.


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Go tour Tok. I spent almost a year there in 1974 catching fish and flying. Time slows down in that upriver country.

Gary
 
I wish there was an active thread for you old timers, I mean highly experienced pilots, to discus how you are seeing the weather develop and what you are looking at. There is a huge amount of local knowledge on this thread alone. Just a discussion of what is coming up and why and what to look for. That would be as valuable as any weather app. It would be especially helpful for those who are looking at other parts of the state.

Jeff congratulations on your trip, you are making an adventure that many of us "locals" dream about. Good for you and thanks for sharing!
 
Good idea. I'll get one going in main area
How to figure out Alaska weather (and other interesting stuff) (supercub.org)
I wish there was an active thread for you old timers, I mean highly experienced pilots, to discus how you are seeing the weather develop and what you are looking at. There is a huge amount of local knowledge on this thread alone. Just a discussion of what is coming up and why and what to look for. That would be as valuable as any weather app. It would be especially helpful for those who are looking at other parts of the state.

Jeff congratulations on your trip, you are making an adventure that many of us "locals" dream about. Good for you and thanks for sharing!
 
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What an epic adventure. Wish I was able to be a long as your wingman. Safe travels and enjoy the “ride”. Stop through on your way back if you get the chance.
Ray
 
Converse with locals as you travel. Please share that with us. Pan-Alaska there's many cultures that are to be respected and learned.

Gary
 
On the ground at Gulkana. Tied down, plugged in, and covered. It’s a balmy 20 degrees here. Compared to minus 19 this morning in Tok. Didn’t even need gloves while I covered airplane. I appear to be acclimating.
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Rick and Michael will line you out with weather in the morning. Tomorrow is Mail Day, so they will be checking at least to McArthy, but can pull up all the various cameras to the west for you.

Some private ones as well as the FAA stuff.

Glad the trip is working out well!
 
Yesterday’s early morning departure out of Whitehorse was exceptional. The beauty of the sunrise on the mountains was intoxicating. IMG_7555.JPGIMG_7559.JPGIMG_7566.JPGIMG_7578.JPGIMG_7581.JPGIMG_7585.JPGIMG_7588.JPGIMG_7603.JPGIMG_7609.JPGIMG_7639.JPG


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Sometimes we just have to go look at the flight path for unknown weather ahead. Going...means never leave a trailing wx that can prevent a return to departure. Always have a good alternate ahead/back or sideways. We all know that but it needs to be #1 in flight planning. It's like "unass this problem" and try again later.

Gary
 
An Alaskan sunrise almost showing all of Mt Drum. IMG_7677.JPG


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jrussi,

While traveling take the time to look and learn the big wx picture for the zone you're in. Ask the locals, if they'll offer, how they deal with weather on their daily flights. Valdez->Copper River->Glenallen/Copper River Basin->southern Alaska Range has its own climate versus Interior Alaska, Susitna River valley, Anchorage, and so on westward to Nome. That's why the NWS produces zone forecasts, a thing they were driven to provide in recent years. And it keeps expanding now to SW coastal waters and neighboring communities due to local flooding and other hazards.

Keep an eye from one day to the next for changes to barometric pressure. Note your altimeter one day versus the next when parked. Did/does it remain stable, or does/has it risen or dropped in reported MSL elevation and baro window reading due to weather system movement? When we flew w/o NWS or Flight Station support in remote areas for extended periods, the only wx info was a self generated. Changes in cloud cover, winds, temperatures, and barometric pressure have meaning if the pilot bothers to pay attention and learn their effects day by day.

Gary
 
Twice daily tracking of baro pressure is such a great baseline tool and of course I forgot to mention it in the newly started WX thread. Superb point, Gary!
jrussi,

While traveling take the time to look and learn the big wx picture for the zone you're in. Ask the locals, if they'll offer, how they deal with weather on their daily flights. Valdez->Copper River->Glenallen/Copper River Basin->southern Alaska Range has its own climate versus Interior Alaska, Susitna River valley, Anchorage, and so on westward to Nome. That's why the NWS produces zone forecasts, a thing they were driven to provide in recent years. And it keeps expanding now to SW coastal waters and neighboring communities due to local flooding and other hazards.

Keep an eye from one day to the next for changes to barometric pressure. Note your altimeter one day versus the next when parked. Did/does it remain stable, or does/has it risen or dropped in reported MSL elevation and baro window reading due to weather system movement? When we flew w/o NWS or Flight Station support in remote areas for extended periods, the only wx info was a self generated. Changes in cloud cover, winds, temperatures, and barometric pressure have meaning if the pilot bothers to pay attention and learn their effects day by day.

Gary
 
I see Pine Lake and the Haines Junction airport in that one picture!!

Todd's 172, yes it does fly every once in awhile.

Mt. Drum can show some really cool weather. Sometimes it wears a hat, other's a shroud. If you listen and watch it will tell you a story about weather that direction... the trouble is going west the weather often has a line about 15 or 20 miles west of the Copper River, and other one near the pass. into the Matanuska valley.

Keep posting, loving the photos!
 
If you get to a point where your only communication is your inReach, if you find that messages seem to go out without response try stacking the server. Sometimes Garmin's server seems to sort messages in an odd way and I have had responses take a day to land on the intended device. So nudging things along by sending two, even three messages in a row can seem to fix small backlogs in server and then things will start working right again. I'm not sure why this is but it's a phenomena I have noticed over the years. Another thing to know is any soft and hard reset procedures for your mini. I had my Explorer fail me on a -20 solo camp till I did a reset. If you somehow give your mini hypothermia from cold exposure, plugging it into a jump pack can make it come back to life. They may have improved cold weather performance of late but these are things that I have encountered that might be worth a thought.

Jerry
 
Made it to Hilltop strip near Birchwood early this afternoon. Staying with fellow dot orger AKPT. Tahneta Pass was a bit scuzzy but not all that bad. It’s great to be up here again. IMG_1975.JPGIMG_7699.JPG


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Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your journey with us. Please keep the pictures coming as possible!
 
Once again MTV and Stewart have been proven correct.

A multi thousand mile trip in the dead of winter with the best camping equipment money can buy and not once was it used so far!

Always good to have it, but sometimes easiest when you don't need it!:p
 
Once again MTV and Stewart have been proven correct.

A multi thousand mile trip in the dead of winter with the best camping equipment money can buy and not once was it used so far!

Yes George but it’s priceless when y

Always good to have it, but sometimes easiest when you don't need it!:p

Yes George but it’s priceless when you do need it!
 
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