Flight Planning

MS and the IFR Pilot are kibitzing on alternative routes for transporting 2TB from KFHR to the Home Base. Transiting the Cascade and Rocky Mountains in November is certainly an -- pardon the pun -- "uphill" challenge. Here's what we've come up with so far:

Leg 1: KFHR to KCOE

This is the current intended first leg:


Assuming 160 knots in a Trinidad, this leg would take about 2 hours.

As a possible alternative, if weather in Stampede Pass prevents passage there, we will go further south. Thusly:


This leg would take about three hours.

UPDATE: It's always been a mystery to the IFR Pilot why the AOPA Real Time Flight Planner didn't display a profile view of a selected route. As it turns out, it does. You just have to click on the "Profile View" link that is to the left of "Print Chart." So, here's the profile view of Leg 1A:




Assuming it ever stops raining in Seattle, both routes should provide great sights. We intend to stop in Oregon, where we will switch seats. That way, we can both check off Oregon in our respective "States Visited" map.



Leg 2: KCOE to KCTB or KGTR

We're still working on this one, but right now we're strongly considering this route:






It's a bit circuitous, but it spends much of the trip in river valleys. Only the final leg requires us to cross over the top of the peaks.

Obviously, the biggest challenge at this time of the year will be the weather. We've got time to spare, so we won't rush it. It should be relatively straightforward flying once we are clear of the Rockies, territory that the IFR Pilot knows somewhat from the Great Alaska Flying Adventure of 2005. Here's hope for a nice high pressure system to arrive in Washington around Wednesday morning of next week!/span>