One of my favorite places to explore on the ground is the American South West. But, I want to fly a course from my base in Corvallis, Oregon down through Owens Valley, Death Valley, over Grand Canyon, through Four Corners, Canyon Land, Capitol Reef, and then home again through central Nevada.

What time of year would give the lowest winds, warmest mornings, but not be so hot I'd pant my *ss off in the afternoons?

Are there seasonal events that might line up to take advantage of?

My plane is slow, so 500 miles per day is about tops, and I want to camp away from big airports.

thanks,
tom

Late April or early May work well in Southern Utah. Spring usually has some winds in the afternoons.

However, I tell everyone that September and October are absolutely dreamy in Southern Utah. This year was no exception, clear skies and reasonable temps. Perfect flying in Moab on my three trips there.

I would say 80-85% of the time, you will have pleasant weather during the fall time. Cant speak for the other states.

Savannah-Tom wrote:One of my favorite places to explore on the ground is the American South West. But, I want to fly a course from my base in Corvallis, Oregon down through Owens Valley, Death Valley, over Grand Canyon, through Four Corners, Canyon Land, Capitol Reef, and then home again through central Nevada.

What time of year would give the lowest winds, warmest mornings, but not be so hot I'd pant my *ss off in the afternoons?

Are there seasonal events that might line up to take advantage of?

My plane is slow, so 500 miles per day is about tops, and I want to camp away from big airports.

thanks,
tom

In and near Grand Canyon is "camp able" ,West end is L25 Pierce Ferry -farther east is Marble , Aztec near 4 corners is useable camp site. Near Colorado City,AZ. there's Mount Turnbull where they camp. North rim of Grand Canyon has landing camp spots. Get Grand Canyon chart . Teweep is open or closed depending on who you talk to. Bar ten is "dude ranch" .
I know southwest area pretty well primarily 4-6 hundred mile radius of Las Vegas-mostly to the East and south . I fly the Grand Canyon a lot and know where to go out there -and where not too. Your little airplane had better be able to climb and maintain in 10,000 altitudes -the ground in and about the add a little heat and Density altitude will go up a lot.

182 STOL driver wrote:Teweep is open or closed depending on who you talk to.

Talk to the FAA. The Tuweep airstrip, designation L50, has been removed from the Airport/Facilities Directory, because it is closed.

Talk to the National Aeronautical Charting Office. The symbol that previously depicted the Tuweep airstrip has been replaced with the symbol for an unverified airport, because it is closed.

Talk to the controlling agency, the Arizona State Land Department. Tuweep has been closed for four years.

I don't think there is a single individual in a position of authority over Tuweep that says it is open. Rumours on the internets don't count.

I've always wanted to camp at Tuweep. I'm staying in St. George, UT for the next several weeks and I flew down to Tuweep yesterday to have a look-see. I didn't see any "X"'s, but the runway is overgrown with pucker bushes and scarred by runoff. It was quite bumpy in the valley, so I didn't do a low pass, but here's what I saw from pattern altitude:




Hmmmm....

Too many other beautiful places here to risk a maybe on Tuweep right now:

Canyon De Chelly, near Chinle for example


The Anasazi White House ruins


Except for late yesterday and today, the Wx has been dead calm and very mild. If you are ready to leave, the Nellis airshow is on this weekend at Nellis AFB near Vegas. I'm goin!!

YB

Did Tuweep a little over 4 years ago with son Roy. Here are some pics of that trip that he took. He needs to trim a few of the extra pics.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/tuweep/

This is in the top five cool places I have been to in a plane. Ashamed that the beuricratic pricks screwed it up in the name of environmentalism.

That was the previous 182B

Tim

qmdv wrote:Did Tuweep a little over 4 years ago with son Roy. Here are some pics of that trip that he took. He needs to trim a few of the extra pics.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/tuweep/

This is in the top five cool places I have been to in a plane. Ashamed that the beuricratic pricks screwed it up in the name of environmentalism.

That was the previous 182B

Tim

That was a nice looking 182 you had, Tim. Nice pics, too!!

Savannah-Tom wrote:One of my favorite places to explore on the ground is the American South West. But, I want to fly a course from my base in Corvallis, Oregon down through Owens Valley, Death Valley, over Grand Canyon, through Four Corners, Canyon Land, Capitol Reef, and then home again through central Nevada.

What time of year would give the lowest winds, warmest mornings, but not be so hot I'd pant my *ss off in the afternoons?

Are there seasonal events that might line up to take advantage of?

My plane is slow, so 500 miles per day is about tops, and I want to camp away from big airports.

thanks,
tom

Tom, the biggest problem I've found is trying to mix camping with low and high altitudes. If you go in March or April, it's already getting pretty hot in Death Valley, but it's still getting down well below freezing at nights at the higher elevations. From previous experience, I know that all of the desired cold weather camping gear and winter clothes can put you well over gross weight.

If you go later in the year to reduce the amount of gear that you need, then it's so scorching hot in Death Valley and the surrounding valleys that you're miserable and you're risking density altitude problems.

I think that Death Valley and the Grand Canyon might need to be two separate trips for different times of the year.

qmdv wrote:Did Tuweep a little over 4 years ago with son Roy. Here are some pics of that trip that he took. He needs to trim a few of the extra pics.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/tuweep/

This is in the top five cool places I have been to in a plane. Ashamed that the beuricratic pricks screwed it up in the name of environmentalism.

That was the previous 182B

Tim

I knew I recognized that airplane from Spanish Fark a year ago. I took a photo of it because I'm a fan of the strait tails.




I went to Tuweep on bike a few years ago and the Ranger there told me that the old Ranger had tranferred to Alaska, but he was the one who kept the strip groomed and used it the most. Clair, I think was his name.

SixTwoLeemer wrote:
I went to Tuweep on bike a few years ago and the Ranger there told me that the old Ranger had tranferred to Alaska, but he was the one who kept the strip groomed and used it the most. Clair, I think was his name.

Clair Roberts recently retired from the National Park Service after serving as Chief Ranger in Sitka for a while. He is making his home near Yosemite where his wife transferred after Sitka. Still has his Cessna 170.

kevbert wrote:Tom, the biggest problem I've found is trying to mix camping with low and high altitudes.

That's a really good point. My plane is so slow at 80mph that I really only want to fly it down there once, so I'll have to make some compromises. Like not camping in the way low or way high areas. I don't want to have to preheat in the mornings, so I'll try to camp where it won't freeze hard over night. Density altitude is not a problem for my plane. At 6000' the takeoff run at "camping weight" is only about 300'.

My biggest concern is having the wind so strong that canyon turbulence would keep me grounded past 10AM. I need to be able to fly into the afternoon to get any decent mileage.

Concerning Tuweep; I've driven past it several times on the way to the rim. It is so far from the rim that I probably wouldn't try camping there anyway. I'd prefer to be able to hike to the edge in a reasonable time. How about Grand Canyon West (1G4)? or Pierce Ferry (L25) or Bar Ten (1Z1) or The Ranch (pvt) or some little dirt road, not near any ranch?

thanks for the responses so far,
tom

Savannah-Tom wrote:Concerning Tuweep; I've driven past it several times on the way to the rim. It is so far from the rim that I probably wouldn't try camping there anyway. I'd prefer to be able to hike to the edge in a reasonable time. How about Grand Canyon West (1G4)? or Pierce Ferry (L25) or Bar Ten (1Z1) or The Ranch (pvt) or some little dirt road, not near any ranch?

It's not near the edge of the canyon, but you also might want to consider Grand Canyon Caverns, the largest dry caverns in the U.S. It could be a decent side trip. They have a mile long gravel strip, auto gas pumps (probably contaminated with ethanol by now), you can stay at their motel, or can pitch your tent in one of their RV campsites for a fee, which isn't as good as camping for free, but they do have laundry facilities which beats washing your undies in the Colorado! http://www.gccaverns.com/

If you find yourself flying farther south than the Grand Canyon, another place that might be worth looking at is Chapman Ranch. Take your guns because they have a shooting range! The Arizona Pilot's Association has a brochure that describes the place and they ask for a hold harmless agreement.
http://www.azpilots.org/PDF%20Files/Chapman%20Ranch%20Airstrip%20Hold%20Harmless%20Agreement,%20Rev%202,%202-2008.pdf
http://www.azpilots.org/PDF%20Files/Chapman%20Ops%20and%20Safety%20Guide,%20Rev%202,%202-2008.pdf