Well folks, this adventure of a lifetime has officially been bumped downstream to next year.

The weather has kicked our collective butts so we've decided to call it quits and try again next year.  The rain is not letting up, the fog, low ceilings and visibility is bad enough but now the winds through the passes we need to fly through are in the 60 knot range causing the turbulence to be more than we can handle........much, much more.

The waiting for this to clear out is over as there is now a very large system coming in right behind this one which means the weather will not improve for quite some time.

Obviously, this is a major disappointment but it's the right call to make.  We have no business trying to duke it out with this weather......it would win the fight which means by default that we'd lose. 

Terry has a hangar for Skeeter to stay in and we went hangar shopping for Mighty Mouse.  We have secured a spot for him to spend the winter in a climate controlled hanger from November 1 through May 1.  Terry will pickle the engine before winter hits and Mighty Mouse will be backed in a corner of the hangar for a 6 month nap.  This hangar has a heated floor and I'm told it will hold the temp inside the hangar at 55 degrees all winter.

So, Cindy and I fly home via American Airlines this Saturday night and get home Sunday.  Until then, we've rented a car and we're making the best of it doing the "touristy" thing.


Alaska is truly our "last frontier".  It's an awesome experience simply to drive around and "look".

We drove south to Seward yesterday (Terry described Seward as a drinking town with a fishing problem) and had a wonderfully fresh seafood meal at "Ray's".  Terry's wife, Charlene, recommended Ray's and we were not disappointed.....not even close.  Ray's is on the waterfront and we had a marvelous view over the water and boats with our meal.

Today we'll do some exploring and hiking as we continue to absorb all that we can while we're here.

Driving south on the Seward Highway

  

The Seward Highway has an endless view of some wonderful scenery

See what I mean???

"Ray's" is on the waterfront and is thee place for fresh seafood

At this point, I'll end this blog..........well, maybe I should say it's put it on hold for now until sometime next year.  After all, we still have a plane in Alaska that needs to find its way home to Arkansas....right??



Jim and Cindy

Monday, September 2, 2013


The weather continues to be a road block and we're just not making any headway on heading back or getting any additional flying time logged here in Alaska.  The weather to the east improves rather quickly once you get to a certain point but the passes we need to fly through to get there are closed down with low ceilings, fog and poor visibility so here we sit.

This is frustrating but the right (and safe) decision is to sit tight and wait it out. 

In the mean time, TD had the oil changed in Skeeter and had a couple other small maintenance items taken care of and Mighty Mouse is tied down and ready.  All we'll have to do is fill up with fuel, load our baggage and we're ready to go.

It's cool enough that fire in the wood burning stove took the chill and dampness out of the air.........not quite what we're used to.  Having a fire this early is NOT something we do in Arkansas so that concept is a little foreign to us but I have to admit it did feel good.   

Viewing this cozy fire below a moose head that's mounted on the wall above it was one of those "Alaskan moments".

Back to flying and the reason for this trip.....the time is closing in on us to get headed back and we're running out of time.  We'll need to make a decision this week whether or not this trip is still on or it gets postponed until after winter.  There's snow on top of the mountains that was not there a week ago, the Birch trees continue to change on a daily basis so the seasonal change is is the air.

We'll see what the next couple days bring but the weather forecast does not look encouraging, but a forecast is just that.....a guess so we'll see.

Skeeter getting his oil changed and some last minute TLC

Nice,comforting fire.......but in the summer??

And this is why we're packing a 12 gauge shot gun with deer slugs for ammunition on our trip.

 

  Keep your fingers crossed for better weather.


Jim & Cindy

Friday, August 30, 2013


Friday morning arrived with continued low ceilings and visibilities but the forecast called for some improvements later in the day which did happen.....not perfect by any means but good enough to fire up Mighty Mouse and get some flying in.

Terry and I flew two flights today, the first one lasted about an hour and we flew close to the Big Lake Airport after which we landed and topped the tanks off to check our fuel burn.

The second flight was a little more adventurous lasting over two hours.  We followed the highway up to Talkeetna, turned around and headed to Wasilla and then the fun began.

With Mighty Mouse flying well and the engine purring like a kitten, our confidence in the plane is increasing.  In life, there's nothing worse than flying an airplane you don't trust but Mighty Mouse is holding up his end of the bargain so far and we're starting to become "friends".  By the time we get back to the lower 48 and on to Arkansas, we'll be intimate friends.

Flight to Talkeetna sandwiched between the clouds and Mother Earth

Headed to snow capped mountains and our first Glaciers

Mountains on the left

 Mountains on the right

And on the nose......Knik Glacier

Awesome view of ice that is thousands of years old

The clarity of glacier water is cloudy due to silt caused by the glacier "grinding" up the rocks as it passes over the earth turning it (the rock) into a very fine powder.   The mountain runoff water and snow melt is clear.

 

These picture were from yesterday (Friday) and we're hopeful that we'll get more flying in today.



Jim & Cindy

Thursday, August 29, 2013



The weather hasn't been "bad" but it has been low and scuzzy, meaning low ceilings and visibilities.

This puts a damper on doing much flying but there was enough of a break so Terry could reposition his Super Cub from his slip in Anchorage to his home on Marion Lake where he wants to keep it while he's gone on this trip.  He has a commercial flight back to Alaska from Las Vegas on September 25 so his Cub will remain here now until his return.

Cindy flew back with Terry while his wonder dog Bella sat in her lap.  This was Cindy's first ever flight in a plane on floats and she fell in love with it.

I did caution her not to fall too deeply in love with this type of flying as it's not on our horizon.......we're stuck with tires on our planes and we'll always need "Terra Firma" for our kind of flying.

So, while Terry and Cindy are enjoying the scenic tour home over water, yours truly got to fly back to Marion Lake 18" off the ground via Terry's airport Subaru that he leaves at his slip for ground transportation whenever he goes to Anchorage.  It's a 1.5 hour road trip versus 20 minutes via Super Cub.....which would you choose???

Mighty Mouse did not break ground today but the weather forecast for tomorrow is encouraging...we'll see.

This is Terry's Super Cub secured in his slip in Anchorage.

While Terry pre-flights the Cub.....Cindy stays warm and somewhat dry.

 

 

 

Terry doing his pre-flight check.

And they're off to Marion Lake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned.....more to follow.



Jim & Cindy

We arrived Anchorage (in the rain) last evening following an uneventful, on time flight....which is always a good thing.

We then road the shuttle, checked into a motel and pretty much crashed.

So, I'm wearing my favorite hat from the Cessna 150-152 Club on the plane yesterday and a flight attendant named Steve comments: "Like your hat".......hmmmmm, must be a pilot and turns out he is.  Had a nice conversation with him (several actually) regarding our adventure at hand.  It's always fun to talk that pilot stuff and it helped make a long flight more enjoyable. 

While waiting for our luggage we looked over the Polar Bear display at the Anchorage airport.  Awesome predators these guys are especially when viewed in terms of the "food chain".

Cindy & Polar Bear at ANC

Polar Bear Display at ANC

Rain is in the forecast today and tomorrow so probably no flying will take place until it's over and the weather improves.

Terry will be picking us up this morning here in Anchorage and we'll head to Big Lake (where he and his wife Charlene live and where Skeeter and Mighty Mouse call home) so at least we'll get some face time with this new (new to us) Mighty Mouse.


The journey is well underway and there's no turning back now, but then again, why would we want to?

 More to follow as things progress.



Jim & Cindy