Backcountry Pilot

[SamIntel offline]

I’m a student pilot (pre-solo, I’m not old enough yet) with around 35 hours. I’m really interested in back country flying and bush flying. My dad and I are going to be going to Alaska this summer, and while we’re there I want to do some flying.
I would like to get a lesson in a float plane, just for fun, and maybe a scenic flight/lesson. Is that something that I would need to schedule ahead before I go, or could I just figure it out once I get there?
I also thought it would be neat to fly around Denali. I was looking around on the Internet and found some outfits that do scenic tours of Denali. I thought that would be cool, except if I don’t really want to spend oodles of money to have some ells do all the flying. Is it possible to find someone who is a pilot/instructor who would make a lesson out of it, where I got to do some of the flying?
When we go there, I would like to fly as much as possible, but money is kind of limiting me. If it turns out to be less expensive than I thought, can anyone recommend some more flying activities to do?

-Sam

[mtv offline]

Sam,

Depends on where you plan to spend most of your time. In the Anchorage area, get in touch (in advance) with Heidi Reuss, or her son Richard, at Arctic Flyers. They have a couple of Taylorcrafts on floats, and will probably be the least expensive float deal you'll find up there. They also do a really good job of instructing. All very high time float pilots.

Anchorage is a long way from Denali, but it would be possible to do that with a t-craft, I suppose, if you wanted to fly up there. The T-craft on floats is somewhat limited on altitude capability, though. And McKinley is sorta tall.

Consider this: Work on your Dad to take the "flight of a lifetime". Get him to pay . Get in touch with K-2 Aviation, based in Talkeetna. They are, in my opinion, one of the two best operators on the mountain. The other is Hudson Air. They both operate out of Talkeetna. If you're there early summer, they'll still be landing on glaciers on the mountain. I spent 30 years up there, and I will tell you without hesitation that a sightseeing flight around McKinley is worth every penny it costs, no matter how much that is. It is a spectacular place, and those folks are good at showing it off. The deepest canyon in north America is the Great Gorge of the Ruth Glacier. Anyway you can work it, get a ride around the mountain, but do it with one of these folks. It can be a tough place to fly at times, so best to do it with the pros. Any floatplane short of a turbine is NOT going to get you where you want to be around teh mountain, though.

Other options for float training: Alex at Dragonfly Air in Homer--He has a PA-11 on floats.

There are a couple other float operators around Lake Hood in ANC. Lake Hood is a spectacle itself. Several hundred floatplanes, and there are times when it seems they all leave at once. Great fun to just walk around and watch aviation happen. And, cheap.

Talkeetna is a funky little place, especially in the climbing season. Busy, though.

Fairbanks is further from everything, so costs more to go from there to other places. Great place, and my home for 20 years, though.

Give me more specifics on where you plan to be and maybe that will trigger a few more bits of gray matter.

MTV

[UP_M5 offline]

sam,

mike has very sound advise.
after my first ride around denali in a beaver complete with a glacier landing- i quit my job, sold my house and moved to talkeetna. now i work on these magnificent ski planes.
i'm a little biased because of where i work (K2), but any operator on the field will give you the ride of your life.
there is also a seaplane school in talkeetna. i got my float rating there- and it was a blast. great people, awesome location.

http://www.alaskafloats.com/

[SamIntel offline]

Sam,

Depends on where you plan to spend most of your time. In the Anchorage area, get in touch (in advance) with Heidi Reuss, or her son Richard, at Arctic Flyers. They have a couple of Taylorcrafts on floats, and will probably be the least expensive float deal you'll find up there. They also do a really good job of instructing. All very high time float pilots.

Anchorage is a long way from Denali, but it would be possible to do that with a t-craft, I suppose, if you wanted to fly up there. The T-craft on floats is somewhat limited on altitude capability, though. And McKinley is sorta tall.

Consider this: Work on your Dad to take the "flight of a lifetime". Get him to pay . Get in touch with K-2 Aviation, based in Talkeetna. They are, in my opinion, one of the two best operators on the mountain. The other is Hudson Air. They both operate out of Talkeetna. If you're there early summer, they'll still be landing on glaciers on the mountain. I spent 30 years up there, and I will tell you without hesitation that a sightseeing flight around McKinley is worth every penny it costs, no matter how much that is. It is a spectacular place, and those folks are good at showing it off. The deepest canyon in north America is the Great Gorge of the Ruth Glacier. Anyway you can work it, get a ride around the mountain, but do it with one of these folks. It can be a tough place to fly at times, so best to do it with the pros. Any floatplane short of a turbine is NOT going to get you where you want to be around teh mountain, though.

Other options for float training: Alex at Dragonfly Air in Homer--He has a PA-11 on floats.

There are a couple other float operators around Lake Hood in ANC. Lake Hood is a spectacle itself. Several hundred floatplanes, and there are times when it seems they all leave at once. Great fun to just walk around and watch aviation happen. And, cheap.

Talkeetna is a funky little place, especially in the climbing season. Busy, though.

Fairbanks is further from everything, so costs more to go from there to other places. Great place, and my home for 20 years, though.

Give me more specifics on where you plan to be and maybe that will trigger a few more bits of gray matter.

MTV

I talked with Alex from Dragonfly Air in Homer, and it sounds like we may be heading down that way. He's got a cabin to rent out if you take some instruction from him.
Do you know if Arctic Flyers does off-airport stuff on wheels?

[SamIntel offline]

mtv & UP_M5:
It sounds like Denali's great. Do you think I could find an instructor that would make a lesson out of flying around Denali, where I got to do some flying?

-Sam

[mtv offline]

Sam,

None of the instructional airplanes around are going to have the performance to really tour McKinley, in my opinion. It may be possible, but frankly, for the money, I'd buy a ride with K-2 or Hudson, and simply enjoy the trip. There's too much stuff to look at and take pictures of (you are bringing your camera, right?) to be bothered with flying there.

Just my thought.

I don't know if Heidi and Richard have any aircraft on wheels. Most of the wheel operators are over on Merrill Field. Stick with the floats. Most of the wheel deals are spam cans.

MTV

[alaskadrifter offline]

Sam,

The T-craft...is somewhat limited on altitude capability, though. And McKinley is sorta tall.

MTV

Got that right! Flying back from Valdez last year my brother and I made to a little over 7000' (with an A65). When are you coming up? Valdez would be another fun thing for you guys to do if you are both into aviation.

Edit- Haha, I just realized this wasn't from this year! Oh well, hope you had fun.

[AKGrouch offline]

Sam, MTV is steering you correctly and his advice is sound. As far as McKinley is concerned, I would go with K2 immediately if I were you. Talk to the pilot and maybe you can sit right seat....you never know. They have quite a few birds going up on the mountain each day in the summer. In any event, enjoy your trip to Alaska.

[Benton offline]

As far as McKinley is concerned, I would go with K2 immediately if I were you. Talk to the pilot and maybe you can sit right seat....you never know.

Wife and I took a Princess Cruise land/sea tour up there several years ago. Did the McKinley tour with K2 in one of their '206s. Pilot asked who wanted the front seat -- I jumped in first, said, "I'm a low-time pilot and would love it just to be able to see more of what you're doing as well." That worked and I got front-right. (The controls were removed from that position, so there was no question of me doing any of the flying, even if he were to have a heartattack!) Even w/o being able to ask questions (we were all on the same intercom line and I didn't want to bore the folks in the back) I still learned a lot.

And secondly, it was a fabulous ride. Memories for a lifetime.

Benton 17feb09

[Zzz]

Notice the date of the original post.

I wonder how Sam is doing?

[onceAndFutr_alaskaflyer offline]

Notice the date of the original post.

I wonder how Sam is doing?

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