Eli: Today was one of those magical flying days thanks to some great weather and alot of cooperation from people on the ground.
We were wheels up from Iqaluit at 9:12 am local time. It always seems to take a little extra time to prepare survival equipment for the over water legs. Despite earlier predictions for a layer of low marine fog over Frobisher Bay, skies were blue and winds were calm. We were able to turn almost immediately on course, first to a waypoint at the border between Canadian and Greenlandic airspace and then directly Sondrestrom Fjord/ Kangerlussuaq Airport. Winds were not quite as favourable as promised but we were still able to average about 130 nm/hr.
Bren took some great shots as we made landfall, the Greenland coast. No matter how smooth the plane is running, it's always a relief to see terra firma rising up to greet you. Rising up is literally the case along Greenland's eastern shores. We had just descended to 9,000 feet and it seemed that we were practically level with the coastal mountain tops. Following vectors up the fjords - first around Holsteinborg and then joining Sondrestrom Fjord proper - it felt like the land was a detailed map unfolding in front of us. The airport came into view when we were about 15 nautical miles to the west in near perfect meteorological conditions and we were cleared for a visual approach to runway 09.
Our hotel in Kangerlussuaq is part of the airport terminal and was once the officer's quarters for the American airbase that was situated here from 1941-1992. Finally we have a good hi-speed Internet connection and are looking forward to uploading some great photos we've taken along the way.
Flying a Cessna 182 into Greenland is the aviation equivalent of backpacking with a Volkswagen Beetle. I definitely feel I'm getting back to my Eurorail Pass roots. People though have been very welcoming and treating us like adventurers rather than tourists. It's also a good excuse for not shaving!
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
Spotty Spot
The good news is the flying has been great. CFMDS, my Cessna 182 has done everything I have asked of it thus far. I truly appreciated the high wing design of our plane today, as it was raining steadily in Rankin Inlet this morning, and Bren and I were able to take shelter under the wings while arranging luggage, charts and donning our survival suits.
On the other hand communications technology has been a source of frustration. Many of you have noted that our tracks from our Spot tracking device have on occasion been late showing up. Also, Spot failed to record our leg from Stony Rapids to Rankin Inlet. Fortunately I'm not relying on Spot as a primary emergency locator transmitter, but if I was, I would be feeling a little queezy in the air.
Internet communication has also been difficult. Finding a connection to file this blog and check email is a constant challenge. Little did I realize that Rogers doesn't service the North, only Telus and Bell.
On a positive note, the highlight of today's flight for me was flying over Coral Harbour in northern Hudson's Bay and discovering how aptly it is named. The tropical turquoise waters, surrounding islets that resemble submerged Mayan pyramids made me think of my similarly coloured 57 Chev minus the tail fins.
On a technical note, I was surprised to learn that though I was in uncontrolled airspace for most of the trip, I was not off the radar, so to speak. Air Defense Radar, a product of NORAD and the Cold War ensures that planes are well tracked even if radio communication with air traffic control is not possible.
Our adventures in refuelling were easier today. We still had to buy fuel by the drum but at least this time two refuellers rolled our drums and used an electric pump (jump wired to their truck battery) as opposed to the hand pump yesterday. Cost for the drum was $440 - we were warned to expect about $800/ barrel in Greenland.
Speaking of Greenland, the weather is looking good for tomorrow. We've done all our flight planning, reloaded the Atlantic (European) database into our main GPS and established a waypoint for crossing into Sonderstrom's Flight Information Region. We've been warned several times not to arrive after 1845Z lest we be charged $900 USD for an after hours fee for keeping the airport open.
An additional advantage of travelling to Europe in a small plane is that one doesn't suffer jet lag. We have been losing on average an hour a day as we cross time zones and am merely pleasantly fatigued at the end of the day. In fact I can feel that fatigue setting in right now. Off to dream about approaches up coastal fjords.
The good news is the flying has been great. CFMDS, my Cessna 182 has done everything I have asked of it thus far. I truly appreciated the high wing design of our plane today, as it was raining steadily in Rankin Inlet this morning, and Bren and I were able to take shelter under the wings while arranging luggage, charts and donning our survival suits.
On the other hand communications technology has been a source of frustration. Many of you have noted that our tracks from our Spot tracking device have on occasion been late showing up. Also, Spot failed to record our leg from Stony Rapids to Rankin Inlet. Fortunately I'm not relying on Spot as a primary emergency locator transmitter, but if I was, I would be feeling a little queezy in the air.
Internet communication has also been difficult. Finding a connection to file this blog and check email is a constant challenge. Little did I realize that Rogers doesn't service the North, only Telus and Bell.
On a positive note, the highlight of today's flight for me was flying over Coral Harbour in northern Hudson's Bay and discovering how aptly it is named. The tropical turquoise waters, surrounding islets that resemble submerged Mayan pyramids made me think of my similarly coloured 57 Chev minus the tail fins.
On a technical note, I was surprised to learn that though I was in uncontrolled airspace for most of the trip, I was not off the radar, so to speak. Air Defense Radar, a product of NORAD and the Cold War ensures that planes are well tracked even if radio communication with air traffic control is not possible.
Our adventures in refuelling were easier today. We still had to buy fuel by the drum but at least this time two refuellers rolled our drums and used an electric pump (jump wired to their truck battery) as opposed to the hand pump yesterday. Cost for the drum was $440 - we were warned to expect about $800/ barrel in Greenland.
Speaking of Greenland, the weather is looking good for tomorrow. We've done all our flight planning, reloaded the Atlantic (European) database into our main GPS and established a waypoint for crossing into Sonderstrom's Flight Information Region. We've been warned several times not to arrive after 1845Z lest we be charged $900 USD for an after hours fee for keeping the airport open.
An additional advantage of travelling to Europe in a small plane is that one doesn't suffer jet lag. We have been losing on average an hour a day as we cross time zones and am merely pleasantly fatigued at the end of the day. In fact I can feel that fatigue setting in right now. Off to dream about approaches up coastal fjords.
East of Coral Harbour, we witnessed at least 30 belugas playing in the turquoise water of west Hudson Bay. Rafi anyone?
We flew what is likely to be our longest leg today - 644 Nautical miles, over Hudson Bay. My expectations of what it would look like were off - there is little to no ice and snow, and the water, in some parts was as turquoise as the Mediterranean. Spotting the whales was a huge highlight for me, I can add one more species to my list of "whales I have seen in the wild". They join the Orcas we paddled with off Victoria, the Humpbacks in Alaska, and the gray whale I kayaked with in Sooke Basin some years back. The belugas are, of course, easier to see given their bright white bodies in the calm Hudson Bay waters we were fortunate enough to have today. Paddling with whales is extraordinary, but viewing them from the plane has it's advantages, particularly being able to see them as they are underwater and watch their antics as a whole group. It was amazing.
We flew in the immersion suites today, and had been concerned that they might be difficult due to their bulkiness and warmth. Quite the opposite, we were very comfortable and neither of us found them overly awkward. Goofy looking, but not awkward. We had reviewed our plan should we have a mechanical failure and need to ditch. Our third passenger is a six person life raft, with the pull cord latched to the seat belt. Upon release, it automatically inflates, and there is a soft release cord in case the plane were to go under. The stats would be in our favor - 85% survive ditching a small plane. However, of that, only 50% survive the time in the water. We can't mitigate the first number, but we can do a lot to ensure that were we to have to ditch, we'd be in that second 50%. However, it is our intention to never have to test our preparations, and to have a well planned trip where we ensure our safety by being patient and flying when the weather is inviting.
The weather was on our side all day today, and our luck continues. We are prepared to be grounded somewhere due to poor weather - we know it is likely to happen at some point, but, knock on wood, we've not run into anything worse than a bit of rain. This just saves me from having to scrub off all the dead bugs after our flight, so I'm personally quite grateful for it. We were flying at 5000 or 6000 feet most of the day, and the temperature at that level was between 8 and 11 degrees C, so icing was not an issue.
We're excited to explore Iqaluit. It's much larger than the last few towns we have been to, and has approximately 6500 inhabitants. It has the feel of a space station, the buildings are cube shaped and industrial looking. It seems everyone we meet are either contract tradesmen or surveyors. The hotel people are all bemoaning the loss of the explorer dollar - it seems that mineral exploration has dropped off due to the recession and had once been a major source of tourism. It seems there is a certain type of person drawn to the North, and everyone we have met love it up here. There are lots of Newfies, and I'm surprised by how hard it is for me to understand their accent. Lovely people though, so friendly and helpful. One Newfoundlander we met at the pub in Rankin inlet last night, in wishing us a great flight, added that he hoped, if we came to Newfoundland someday, that he'd be on the Taramc to great us. I couldn't tell if it was a comment about hosting us, or whether he just longed for his homeland.
It's time to eat. We had a meal before leaving Ranking Inlet, but it's eight hours later and the trail mix isn't staving off hunger any more. We want to get a little jog in, and view the town as we run. Tomorrow, weather permitting, Greenland!
We flew in the immersion suites today, and had been concerned that they might be difficult due to their bulkiness and warmth. Quite the opposite, we were very comfortable and neither of us found them overly awkward. Goofy looking, but not awkward. We had reviewed our plan should we have a mechanical failure and need to ditch. Our third passenger is a six person life raft, with the pull cord latched to the seat belt. Upon release, it automatically inflates, and there is a soft release cord in case the plane were to go under. The stats would be in our favor - 85% survive ditching a small plane. However, of that, only 50% survive the time in the water. We can't mitigate the first number, but we can do a lot to ensure that were we to have to ditch, we'd be in that second 50%. However, it is our intention to never have to test our preparations, and to have a well planned trip where we ensure our safety by being patient and flying when the weather is inviting.
The weather was on our side all day today, and our luck continues. We are prepared to be grounded somewhere due to poor weather - we know it is likely to happen at some point, but, knock on wood, we've not run into anything worse than a bit of rain. This just saves me from having to scrub off all the dead bugs after our flight, so I'm personally quite grateful for it. We were flying at 5000 or 6000 feet most of the day, and the temperature at that level was between 8 and 11 degrees C, so icing was not an issue.
We're excited to explore Iqaluit. It's much larger than the last few towns we have been to, and has approximately 6500 inhabitants. It has the feel of a space station, the buildings are cube shaped and industrial looking. It seems everyone we meet are either contract tradesmen or surveyors. The hotel people are all bemoaning the loss of the explorer dollar - it seems that mineral exploration has dropped off due to the recession and had once been a major source of tourism. It seems there is a certain type of person drawn to the North, and everyone we have met love it up here. There are lots of Newfies, and I'm surprised by how hard it is for me to understand their accent. Lovely people though, so friendly and helpful. One Newfoundlander we met at the pub in Rankin inlet last night, in wishing us a great flight, added that he hoped, if we came to Newfoundland someday, that he'd be on the Taramc to great us. I couldn't tell if it was a comment about hosting us, or whether he just longed for his homeland.
It's time to eat. We had a meal before leaving Ranking Inlet, but it's eight hours later and the trail mix isn't staving off hunger any more. We want to get a little jog in, and view the town as we run. Tomorrow, weather permitting, Greenland!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Of Oxygen, Octane and Coincidental Encounters
Bren and I arrived at Stony Rapids Airport this morning only to find our Cessna engulfed in a swarm of small but ferocious insects. Insects have a habit of making themselves at home in an aircraft's pitot tube, which, if plugged will give erroneous airspeed readings. Fortunately the night before I had sheathed my pitot tube in it's cover, sometimes called a "peter heater" and the bugs' only mischief was few bites behind the ears during the pre-flight inspection.
While we were preparing C-FMDS for the day's flying, we noticed a familiar looking Piper Navajo getting fueled. Sure enough, it was John Lovelace of "Wings Across Canada" fame who was just returning from flight across Canada commemorating the 100th anniversary of the first Canadian aircraft's flight, the Silver Dart.
Flying today was largely in Visual Meteorological Conditions (VMC) with a layer of light cumulus clouds between 4,000-5,000 feet. At N60 50' W102 we entered the Standard Atimeter setting Region, setting our altimeter to 29.92 instead of the nearest local altimeter setting. Also a first for me was flying an approach using true headings rather than magnetic headings. With a GPS I must confess it wasn't particularly difficult.
Our flight time today was 3:22 minutes and we used just about a half a tank, 44 U.S. gallons of fuel. my
The real fun started when we arrived in Rankin Inlet. After finding overnight parking we were greeted by a couple of airport employees who called the fuel service for us. The fuel truck pulled up had a tank full of Jet-A fuel, which would toast my 230 horesepower Lycoming 540 engine in a hurry. When we asked for Avgas, our fueller replied "How may drums would you like?"
And did I mention that uncorking and hand pumping the fuel from drum to aircraft wasn't included in the price? Moreover, neither was the pump! I'm a city boy, it's a big deal for me self-fuel my plane let alone figure out how to uncork a drum. Fortunately a local medivac service, Keewatin Air not only rented us a pump, but also helped us hook it up to the proud and heavy blue fuel barrel parked by our plane.
We emptied most of 205 litres of 100 low lead into our tanks a donated the remainder to the local ATV and boating crowd. The nice folks at Keewatin Air used their medivac expertise to refill our oxygen bottle, which was something we couldn't get done in Grande Praire or Fort McMurray. While most things in the north are incredibly expensive, the oxygen, at $25 for the fillup, was less than half the cost of getting it done in Vancouver.
All told, our cost for the fill-up was: $370 for the fuel drum (no refunds for unused fuel), $50 for the pump working out to a total of about $2.00 a litre. By comparison fuel in Stony Rapids was $1.75/ litre and at the South Terminal in Vancvouver $1.50/ litre. Northern hospitality, on the other hand, was priceless.
While we were preparing C-FMDS for the day's flying, we noticed a familiar looking Piper Navajo getting fueled. Sure enough, it was John Lovelace of "Wings Across Canada" fame who was just returning from flight across Canada commemorating the 100th anniversary of the first Canadian aircraft's flight, the Silver Dart.
Flying today was largely in Visual Meteorological Conditions (VMC) with a layer of light cumulus clouds between 4,000-5,000 feet. At N60 50' W102 we entered the Standard Atimeter setting Region, setting our altimeter to 29.92 instead of the nearest local altimeter setting. Also a first for me was flying an approach using true headings rather than magnetic headings. With a GPS I must confess it wasn't particularly difficult.
Our flight time today was 3:22 minutes and we used just about a half a tank, 44 U.S. gallons of fuel. my
The real fun started when we arrived in Rankin Inlet. After finding overnight parking we were greeted by a couple of airport employees who called the fuel service for us. The fuel truck pulled up had a tank full of Jet-A fuel, which would toast my 230 horesepower Lycoming 540 engine in a hurry. When we asked for Avgas, our fueller replied "How may drums would you like?"
And did I mention that uncorking and hand pumping the fuel from drum to aircraft wasn't included in the price? Moreover, neither was the pump! I'm a city boy, it's a big deal for me self-fuel my plane let alone figure out how to uncork a drum. Fortunately a local medivac service, Keewatin Air not only rented us a pump, but also helped us hook it up to the proud and heavy blue fuel barrel parked by our plane.
We emptied most of 205 litres of 100 low lead into our tanks a donated the remainder to the local ATV and boating crowd. The nice folks at Keewatin Air used their medivac expertise to refill our oxygen bottle, which was something we couldn't get done in Grande Praire or Fort McMurray. While most things in the north are incredibly expensive, the oxygen, at $25 for the fillup, was less than half the cost of getting it done in Vancouver.
All told, our cost for the fill-up was: $370 for the fuel drum (no refunds for unused fuel), $50 for the pump working out to a total of about $2.00 a litre. By comparison fuel in Stony Rapids was $1.75/ litre and at the South Terminal in Vancvouver $1.50/ litre. Northern hospitality, on the other hand, was priceless.
We are North of 60!
Travelling to the North is like reading Margaret Atwood. You know you should do it, because it will make you a better Canadian. But, you don't realize how wonderful it is going to be until you actually just jump in and do it.
Today we flew from Stony Rapids to Rankin Inlet. It was remarkably desolate, which I expected, I just didn't realize the sheer expanse of the landscape. It is barren, but not entirely. We did not fly over ice and snow, but over vast green tundra with brown rocky sections. There are literally thousands of lakes. I saw no wildlife in 3.5 hours of flying, with the exception of one lone white goose.
Rankin inlet is great. It's tiny but extremely alive - everyone is moving around, there are four wheelers zipping all over town with adorable inuit children smiling and waving away. Folk are incredibly friendly, which is what we've heard about the North. It's a delight to be here. Getting fuel was an adventure, which I'm sure Eli will blog about. Time to eat my $30 fish and chips!
Today we flew from Stony Rapids to Rankin Inlet. It was remarkably desolate, which I expected, I just didn't realize the sheer expanse of the landscape. It is barren, but not entirely. We did not fly over ice and snow, but over vast green tundra with brown rocky sections. There are literally thousands of lakes. I saw no wildlife in 3.5 hours of flying, with the exception of one lone white goose.
Rankin inlet is great. It's tiny but extremely alive - everyone is moving around, there are four wheelers zipping all over town with adorable inuit children smiling and waving away. Folk are incredibly friendly, which is what we've heard about the North. It's a delight to be here. Getting fuel was an adventure, which I'm sure Eli will blog about. Time to eat my $30 fish and chips!
Eli: Our decision to fly to Williams Lake last night paid off in spades this morning. Conditions were calm crossing the Rockies in cool morning air. By going north and then diagonally to Grande Prairie, we encountered no trace of the fires and thunderstorms still plaguing the lower parts of BC and Alberta. Flying high and on instruments we didn't have to contend with the ocassional valley fog bank that might have clogged the visual VFR routes.
The plane is performing exactly as it should, burning on average about 13 gallons per hour at 22 in. of manifold pressure and 2200 RPM about 50 degrees rich of peak with an average true airspeed of 130 nautical miles per hour. With a bit of a tail wind we averaged about 140 nm/hr on most of our legs.
No equipment snafus. Even our "Spot" tracking device, which was initally slow to pick up our tracks now appears to be reporting our position in relative real time. (see the hot link on this blog).
When we left Fort McMurray in the afternoon we also left controlled airspace. Communications and protocol are very different when one isn't in constant contact with air traffic control. Accurant self reporting of positions and time enroute becomes the norm without ATC radar coverage - which is the case for much of Canada in contrast with the U.S.
One of my big concerns on the trip was landing at Stony Rapids, SK. It is listed as a "treated gravel" runway in the Canada Flight Supplement. I'd never landed on a gravel strip before and worried that it might damage the prop or undercarriage from rocks flying up. And where would I get my prop repaired at almost 60 degrees North?
Turns out the Stony Rapids runway is smoother and in better shape than my driveway at home as well as many lower mainland airstrips. The gravel is sealed and feels just like ashpalt.
Tomorrow our goal is Rankin Inlet, Nunavut. As I become more proficient at blogging I'll try to post some of our actual flight logs.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Bedtime stories of being eaten by a pack of wolves. Does that mean we are officially in the North?
What an incredible day of flying. We started the day by flying over the Rockies at 15,000 feet. It was gorgeous - scattered clouds and great views of the majestic peaks below us. According to the maps we were at least 2000 feet above at all times, but sometimes it felt as if you could reach out and touch the mountains around us. Truly magnificent. We then transitioned through the foothills, until we reached genuine prairie. There was an incredible cloud bank over the Prairie section of our route, and we played in the clouds for a while. I love the feeling of approaching a cloud and feeling the rush as it engulfs the plane, shakes you a little, then you emerge to blue sky. Of course, these were small, fluffy white clouds, not the CVs or large clouds that can either carry a lot of water or suck you up into an electrical storm. We left those behind us in the south!
We had three legs today: Williams Lake (CYWL) to Grand Prairie (CYQU); Grand Prairie to Fort McMurray (CYMM); Fort McMurray to Stony Rapids (CYSF). Each leg was a distinctive terrain - the Rocky Mountains, the Prairies, and the more barren flatland of the North. There was no snow on the ground, just immeasurable tracks of flat, sparse land with thousands of lakes. We went over an hour without seeing any sign of civilization before arriving at Stony Rapids.
Stony Rapids is a nice surprise. With a population of 250 people, the town is minimally resourced, but we found a cozy hotel called "Al's place" where Sheila, Al's wife, runs a great kitchen and keeps the rooms perfectly clean and nicely appointed. She is also full of terrific stories, having grown up on reserve in North Quebec, and lived in the North most of her life. Did you know that there was a 22 year old surveyor killed by a wolf pack three years ago not far from here? Also, her recommendation in meeting a polar bear is to give him his space. Back away slowly and let him be. This is not dissimilar to how we deal with the black bears in North Van that we occasionally meet while trail running.
Enough typing - on to the photos. The shots of the mountains are worth checking out, IMHO.
Over and out,
Bren
We had three legs today: Williams Lake (CYWL) to Grand Prairie (CYQU); Grand Prairie to Fort McMurray (CYMM); Fort McMurray to Stony Rapids (CYSF). Each leg was a distinctive terrain - the Rocky Mountains, the Prairies, and the more barren flatland of the North. There was no snow on the ground, just immeasurable tracks of flat, sparse land with thousands of lakes. We went over an hour without seeing any sign of civilization before arriving at Stony Rapids.
Stony Rapids is a nice surprise. With a population of 250 people, the town is minimally resourced, but we found a cozy hotel called "Al's place" where Sheila, Al's wife, runs a great kitchen and keeps the rooms perfectly clean and nicely appointed. She is also full of terrific stories, having grown up on reserve in North Quebec, and lived in the North most of her life. Did you know that there was a 22 year old surveyor killed by a wolf pack three years ago not far from here? Also, her recommendation in meeting a polar bear is to give him his space. Back away slowly and let him be. This is not dissimilar to how we deal with the black bears in North Van that we occasionally meet while trail running.
Enough typing - on to the photos. The shots of the mountains are worth checking out, IMHO.
Over and out,
Bren
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
And we're off! First stop - Williams Lake
Eli: I wasn't sure if we'd actually get away today. The last minute chores and errands seemed to multiply in the morning more rapidly than the thunderstorms around Calgary in the afternoon.
When the running around was finished, weather and weight preoccupied me until takeoff. Weather because the thunderstorms caused by the clash of cool and warm weather systems threatened to yet again erect an insurmountable wall of convective activity along the eastern slope of the Continental Divide. Weight, because in our efforts to be prepared for just about contingency, it seemed at one point we were approaching the maximum take-off weight of the aircraft.
Weight and balance is very important to a small plane. If the aircraft is overweight and if its load, is improperly positioned (even if it is underweight) a stall, an inability to climb, or even strutural failure and loss of control may result. Anyway, with a little pruning we were able to lighten ourselves to be comfortably within our performance envelope, even with full tanks.
In the end, we decided to at least get a couple of hundred nautical miles under our belts and headed to Williams Lake where the thunderstorms weren't a concern.
Bren: Thanks to our friends Brian and Bo for sending us off at YVR and for taking great photos of our last minute preparations. I'll post them on here for folks to check out. Brian is a police officer with VPD policeman(he was actually the person who introduced Eli and I) but he freelances as a professional photographer when he isn't organizing the police bikes for the Olympics. It was nice to have a send off, and Bo even cleaned our airplane's windows for us!
Flying to Williams Lake began beautifully. ATC sent us parallel to Indian Arm (home base) and the mountains we look out at all the time are even more gorgeous up close. There were lots of little alpine lakes and still quite a lot of snow and ice. Things changed about half way into the 1:40 minute flight, we flew into smog from the fires. I still have a sore throat and my eyes got a bit itchy. It's amazing how much haze there is, even at 14,000 feet. No fun. It's been such a rough fire season.
Tomorrow we cross the Rockies. The main concern is conductive activity. No one in the weather office can remember having thunderstorms as Northern and as frequently and as violently as we have had them this summer. So we remain at the mercy of the weather and detailed, cautious planning.
Thank goodness for excellent weather briefers!
Plan for Day Two
CYQU (Grande Prarie) - CYPE (Peace River) - CYMM (Fort McMurray) - CYSF (Stony Rapids)
Over and out.
When the running around was finished, weather and weight preoccupied me until takeoff. Weather because the thunderstorms caused by the clash of cool and warm weather systems threatened to yet again erect an insurmountable wall of convective activity along the eastern slope of the Continental Divide. Weight, because in our efforts to be prepared for just about contingency, it seemed at one point we were approaching the maximum take-off weight of the aircraft.
Weight and balance is very important to a small plane. If the aircraft is overweight and if its load, is improperly positioned (even if it is underweight) a stall, an inability to climb, or even strutural failure and loss of control may result. Anyway, with a little pruning we were able to lighten ourselves to be comfortably within our performance envelope, even with full tanks.
In the end, we decided to at least get a couple of hundred nautical miles under our belts and headed to Williams Lake where the thunderstorms weren't a concern.
Bren: Thanks to our friends Brian and Bo for sending us off at YVR and for taking great photos of our last minute preparations. I'll post them on here for folks to check out. Brian is a police officer with VPD policeman(he was actually the person who introduced Eli and I) but he freelances as a professional photographer when he isn't organizing the police bikes for the Olympics. It was nice to have a send off, and Bo even cleaned our airplane's windows for us!
Flying to Williams Lake began beautifully. ATC sent us parallel to Indian Arm (home base) and the mountains we look out at all the time are even more gorgeous up close. There were lots of little alpine lakes and still quite a lot of snow and ice. Things changed about half way into the 1:40 minute flight, we flew into smog from the fires. I still have a sore throat and my eyes got a bit itchy. It's amazing how much haze there is, even at 14,000 feet. No fun. It's been such a rough fire season.
Tomorrow we cross the Rockies. The main concern is conductive activity. No one in the weather office can remember having thunderstorms as Northern and as frequently and as violently as we have had them this summer. So we remain at the mercy of the weather and detailed, cautious planning.
Thank goodness for excellent weather briefers!
Plan for Day Two
CYQU (Grande Prarie) - CYPE (Peace River) - CYMM (Fort McMurray) - CYSF (Stony Rapids)
Over and out.
The Route, as of 14:27 Z today
The weather continues to be a confounding issue in Southern Alberta. If you read about the recent tragic rock concert, you understand our concern. We need to re-route. Eli has chosen a more Northerly route to get us around it. Rather than flying to Edson or Edmonton on our first leg, we'll be flying to Grande Prarie via Williams Lake. Now we just have to watch for NOTAMs (Notice to Air Man) about the forest fire in Lilloet - we'll likely be vectored all over the place avoiding the smoke.
Day One
CYVR (Vancouver) to BASRA (Waypoint) to GARRE (Waypoint) to YWL (Williams Lake).
YWL (Williams Lake) to YQU (GP NDB) to CYQU (Grande Prarie).
We're both excited. Eli is upstairs printing out routing information, i've just been packing our clothes. Given the extremely limit weight restrictions, we've each bought a MEC 40Litre pack. It's much smaller than it sounds - this is a small pack! We'll arrive in Europe, but we we'll have one outfit that isn't designed for the North in summer time. I'm trying to find the eye covers British Air gives out - we've got them around somewhere - because it is perpetually sunny up North in the summer, of course. Incredible to imagine that we might be in Ranken Inlet on Wednesday night! Back to the packing....
Day One
CYVR (Vancouver) to BASRA (Waypoint) to GARRE (Waypoint) to YWL (Williams Lake).
YWL (Williams Lake) to YQU (GP NDB) to CYQU (Grande Prarie).
We're both excited. Eli is upstairs printing out routing information, i've just been packing our clothes. Given the extremely limit weight restrictions, we've each bought a MEC 40Litre pack. It's much smaller than it sounds - this is a small pack! We'll arrive in Europe, but we we'll have one outfit that isn't designed for the North in summer time. I'm trying to find the eye covers British Air gives out - we've got them around somewhere - because it is perpetually sunny up North in the summer, of course. Incredible to imagine that we might be in Ranken Inlet on Wednesday night! Back to the packing....
Monday, August 3, 2009
Vancouver Sun Article on our Trip, kinda fun
http://www.vancouversun.com/Vancouver+newlyweds+Europe+Cessna/1856534/story.html
Monday night, final night of preparation
11:53 pm the night before our departure on what I assume will be the most exciting travel adventure of our lives. Despite the excitement, we're tired - much of the day was spent tracking down last minute survival kit necessities such as dried food and flares. We are wondering if flares will deter a polar bear attack. The big debate of late has been whether or not to bring a rifle. On the "for" side is the protection from being devoured by a hungry polar bear. On the "against" side is the difficulty of explaining to border guards in Europe the necessity of a hunting rifle on a small plane. Against has won out.
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