Backcountry Pilot

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Saturday morning was gorgeous, and good weather was promised for the weekend, so I headed south from Anchorage. Here, the Homer spit on the south end of the Kenai peninsula, is a popular camping/RV spot for tourists.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Looking back on the Kenai peninsula and the Kenai Fjords. I'm climbing high for the miles of open water I need to cross to Kodiak island. That way I'll have more time to reflect on how cold the water will be when my engine quits over the ocean.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Kodiak Island airport. All fueled up, heading south on the Island.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

These eagles were the overseers of Seven Mile Beach, Kodiak.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Heading back north after a day of exploring Kodiak. The sun was getting lower, and cloud decks and reflections made it interesting. The land in the background is part of the Alaska peninsula which merges into the Aleutian islands, extending nearly 1000 miles southwest. The Aleutians are the weather capital of the world, turning out some of the nastiest weather the planet has known, but you wouldn't know it today.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

I'm racing the sunlight for Montague island, where I've heard a cabin sits on a bay. A cabin is sounding real good after a long day of flying. It's about 11pm.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Made it to Montague island, but the sun had set and I wasn't exactly sure whrere the cabin was, so I retreated here to Evans Island, which I had overflown 15 minutes prior and had seen a landing strip. I was prepared to throw the tent out, but found a backdoor unlocked to a building and set up camp on the couch. This is the next morning, and in a few minutes the sun will hit the airplane, melting off the frost and persuading the engine to come to life.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Next morning at Montague island-- found the cabin. A huge expanse of beach made for a nice landing spot. The tides around here can change drastically. My tide tables put high tide at 3:45AM, and the water was now 15 feet lower than that. The tides in the Knik arm change an average of 33 feet, putting it second only to the Bay of Fundy for the world's biggest tide swings (up to 50 feet). Misjudging a tide can be costly for a cub parked on a beach.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Coming to an understanding with each other before another water crossing

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

More bears than humans on the island?

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Shelter Cove on Hinchinbrook Island, as viewed from the beach. Another hike to check out a different cabin.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Valdez, Alaska. Lunch was a homemade treat from a nearby cafe, owned by a lady who moved to Alaska many years ago for solitude. She lived in the bush for 9 months and then decided running water and electricity might be nice, so moved to Valdez.

Photo: Shaun Lunt

Photo: Shaun Lunt

The dark line in these merging glaciers represents the different speeds and erosive turbulence of each glacier.

Photo: Shaun Lunt