Just looking over the sectionals and curious as to what routes VFR pilots take around the Wasatch front mtn rage too and from SLC to HCR (Heber Mcdonald)? Prove Canyon and or 1-80?

Any Canyon. What are you flying? Provo Canyon works or just go up Parleys. What are you flying?

Heading out of KSLC I'd go I-80. I'm out of U42 so I generally go Provo Canyon or up Big Cottonwood Canyon. Either way I usually return by the other just to change the scenery. Don't go up trying to buy cheap fuel.

Rich

PittsDriver wrote:Heading out of KSLC I'd go I-80. I'm out of U42 so I generally go Provo Canyon or up Big Cottonwood Canyon. Either way I usually return by the other just to change the scenery. Don't go up trying to buy cheap fuel.

Rich

That’s no kidding! You have to want/need to go to Heber. Otherwise I avoid it.

What elevation is common through those canyons?

Have you done any canyon flying? Do you have any mountain flying training? That makes a big difference. Time of day, winds, aircraft performance capability, all play a big part.

Not many airplanes have the climb capability to take either Provo or Parley's starting at only a couple thousand feet AGL. Get your altitude first and then you'll be much safer. Rocks are harder than aluminum.

Cary

I go through Weber, Ogden and North Ogden at 6500-7500 if the winds are light. Parleys you’ll probably want to be around 9K. 7500-9000 through Provo on a calm day should be fine. When I come through that area I’m usually already at cruise above the ridge line...9500-11500.

+1 on what Cary and Grassstrippilot have stated.

I'd add Provo canyon is relatively narrow and it's not uncommon to have opposing traffic. Use CTAF and give position/altitude/direction of flight reports entering and exiting Provo canyon.

The I-80 route, stay up to keep from buzzing the homes around Parleys summit. Nothing to see down low anyway, just a bunch of overpriced real estate.

Rich

Very true!

Grassstrippilot wrote:I go through Weber, Ogden and North Ogden at 6500-7500 if the winds are light. Parleys you’ll probably want to be around 9K. 7500-9000 through Provo on a calm day should be fine. When I come through that area I’m usually already at cruise above the ridge line...9500-11500.

Thank you for your input.

Cary wrote:Have you done any canyon flying? Do you have any mountain flying training? That makes a big difference. Time of day, winds, aircraft performance capability, all play a big part.

Not many airplanes have the climb capability to take either Provo or Parley's starting at only a couple thousand feet AGL. Get your altitude first and then you'll be much safer. Rocks are harder than aluminum.

Cary

Thank you. I have not done any canyon or mtn training, hence my questions. I love doing all the research I can.

Find a source for winds over the peaks...there are undoubtably weather stations at various points in the Wasatch. It doesn't matter what the wind is doing in Salt Lake or Herber, what matters is what the wind is doing at the peaks.

It takes VERY little wind to create down drafts and turbulence that you cannot survive if you fly in the wrong place...and that wrong place can be a surprisingly long way from the mountains. It happens fast, and unless you're burning aviation kerosene, your engine performance wont help you at all. Altitude is good, but mountain waves can reach thousands of feet above the mountains and pull airplanes to the ground. When the conditions are just wrong, the only way to survive is not to be there.

The shape of the mountains has a dramatic impact on how the wind behaves. A turbo Twin Commander flying over the Warner mountains in California was pulled to the ground from (if I recall correctly) 5,000 feet above the mountain peak. The shape of the Warners is particularly bad for mountain wave creation.

Here's one of many references on the subject of Mountain Wave Turbulence:

https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/20 ... urbulence/

Quoting from above "In 1966, clear air turbulence associated with a mountain wave ripped apart a BOAC Boeing 707 while it flew near Mt. Fuji in Japan. In 1968, a Fairchild F-27B lost parts of its wings and empennage, and in 1992 a Douglas DC-8 lost an engine and wingtip in mountain wave encounters."

Wind in the Wasatch is no joke, as I'm sure you know. On multiple occasions I've seen empty box cars blown off the tracks in Ogden. Be REALLY careful while figuring out mountain flying!

There's no substitute for dual, but Sparky Imeson's book https://www.mountainflying.com/products/mfbr_info.html is still a fantastic foundation and will help you get the most out of mountain/canyon dual.

CAVU

CAVU wrote:There's no substitute for dual, but Sparky Imeson's book https://www.mountainflying.com/products/mfbr_info.html is still a fantastic foundation and will help you get the most out of mountain/canyon dual.

CAVU

Fully agree on both points. Get Sparky's book first, digest it thoroughly, then spend some time flying with a good mountain instructor. The DIY method can work, but it can also kill.

Cary