After a nearly 3 year stint of not having a personal plane, I finally found and purchased a '72 185.

I used to have a '78 Super Cub, but just wasn't big enough for the family, so decided to sell it and have been looking for a 180/185 for about 3 years now. I wasn't tied to a 180 or 185, but it seemed that 185's were about 30-50k more than a similar 180, but when this 185 showed up, it was nearly exactly what I wanted, with the big expensive mods done and completed (minus the IO-550 conversion...). Recently (2 years ago when the interior was stripped) weighed, on scales, at 1800 lbs. So I think it'll be an alright performer.

Excited to go get her from AK, and have been looking at all the proclivities of flying from AK to the lower 48. I missed the opportunity to fly from AK to the L48 when I got my Super Cub because I was in flight school. Now I will be waiting for things to calm down and the US/Canada border to open up.

Just saying hi to the forum.

- Jake

Pics (unknowable if this is going to work):

It seems to have worked just fine, its a sweet look'n ride

That looks great. I bought a 170 in Alaska and flew it home last year. Fun trip...

https://backcountrypilot.org/community/forum/latest/fairbanks-to-vermont-23520

Dirt911,

Your trip looks like it was pretty epic. Once all this clears up, my brother (non-pilot) and I plan on flying up and grabbing her...hoping we have as good of luck as you did with weather! I am gonna take 2 weeks of leave, a day or so to travel North, a couple maybe 3 days in AK to see some sights in the plane and get some association with her, then however long it takes to make the trip South.

- Jake

With two weeks you should have no problems. I got home faster than I thought, and wish I had flown around AK some more, but who knows, I could have gotten stuck waiting for wx anywhere. I just decided to make hay when I got the sun shine.

I’m jealous of the “utility”/bigrenna interior...

You figured it out earlier than I. I keep telling everyone I should have bought my 185 30 years ago instead of fooling around with a bunch of “lesser” planes. That’s a bit harsh, let’s just say the others were special in their own way.

Nice. Congrats

Nice 185!

Looks like it’ll be a good plane. Personally, I dislike stripped interiors, for several reasons, but if you like it good deal.

On flying from AK to lower 48, your time frame should work, BUT, if that two weeks off is a hard time frame (like bad things will happen if you’re a day or two late), I would look carefully at the current and forecast weather, and maybe skip flying around AK. I’ve taken six or seven days to make the trip, and done it in two....butt busters.

But I also know a couple of very competent and courageous pilots who’ve done it in ten to in one winter case, twenty days. Winter can be real good, or real bad. Actually,any time of year can be either.

Read up on Tim’s thread on here about flying to/from AK. Lots of good info there.

MTV

Thankfully now I am an instructor, so I can take the full 2 weeks off, and if I need some more time, it's an easy phone call and just have to take an EP exam when I come back.

I have been perusing the site and reading every trip report I can, still a lot to go through, but I think I have a good plan, which I will likely bounce off the guys here before executing.

The big "when" will be predicated on when my 50nm liberty radius gets lifted due to the virus at this time, and when the US/Canada border opens back up...not 100% sure that limits GA travel, but couldn't find any info regarding that...

- Jake

Nice 185! If you are camping on your way down and need a grass strip to stop at in Alberta you are welcome to drop in.

Nice! If you stay west and swing thru Seattle you can overnight at S50. Send me a PM-

Matt

There are no restrictions on GA travel in Canada that I'm aware of. The Canadian equivalent of AOPA, COPA has been posting updates on their website