I usually fly the Cessna 172 or the new Bonanza, and i fly VFR at 2000 feet or so to enjoy the scenery.  The altimeter tells me how high I am from sea level.

How do I tell how far I am above the ground and also how high do I have to be to clear those mountains up ahead?

Roy

Some aircraft have a radio altimeter that will give you that information, but I don’t believe more basic aircraft like the two you’ve mentioned have one.

Best bet without a radio altimeter is to look at charts before hand as they will have minimum safe altitudes (MSA) noted and point altitudes for high points.  Sky Vector https://skyvector.com is free and has great VFR charts for the US and parts of southern Canada.

I use SkyVector all the time but I just looked at the WorldVFR maps and found out I wasn't zooming in far enough.  The information I want is all there.

Thanks.

Roy

I use Avliasoft EFB and it always shows me how high I am above the ground. It works great for approaches in the mountains, which I am flying right now in Brazil. Couldn't fly without it. 

In MSFS go to the default external view and the AGL is shown at the bottom of the altimeter.

Regards,

Ray

I use Little NavMap it shows how high I need to be above the ground for the whole flight plan.

9 minutes ago, raymar said:

In MSFS go to the default external view and the AGL is shown at the bottom of the altimeter.

Regards,

Ray

Which doesn't work very well, in steeply rising terrain in mountainous areas. By the time it reads a few hundred feet, you are 1 or 2 seconds from impact. 

If the OP is flying at 2,000 ft, those are hills, not mountains. 😛

1 minute ago, raymar said:

If the OP is flying at 2,000 ft, those are hills, not mountains. 😛

If you are flying in a valley, you can have mountains on either side, I have done this in real life in Alaska. 

2 hours ago, Roy Warren said:

How do I tell how far I am above the ground

and also how high do I have to be to clear those mountains up ahead?

1/ You need a radar altimeter not available on a 172 or Bonanza

2/ Two solutions mutually non exclusive

- prepare your flight with Little Nav Map which has a window showing the relief profile of your flight so you can wisely select waypoints to bypass high reliefs

- use the Map "Rel" option of the Garmin NXi which shows in red what is ahead of you and that you cannot fly over at your present altitude

1 hour ago, raymar said:

In MSFS go to the default external view and the AGL is shown at the bottom of the altimeter.

Regards,

Ray

The reading below the altimeter is just the digital readout of the altimeter, not the the AGL altitude. 

5 hours ago, regis9 said:

Best bet without a radio altimeter is to look at charts before hand as they will have minimum safe altitudes (MSA) noted and point altitudes for high points.  Sky Vector https://skyvector.com is free and has great VFR charts for the US and parts of southern Canada.

If you ask ICAO, MSA is the Minimum Sector Altitude(s) around a 25nm radius which guarantees 1.000 ft obstacle clearance for an approach

What you mention on the Skyvector Sectional is the MEF (Max elevation Figure). As a pilot, you should not mix these two up because they do not mean the same thing.

• MSA provides 1000ft separation from the highest obstacle within the 25nm radius
• MEF on the FAA Sectionals adds either 100ft or 200ft (depending on highest obstacle is man-made or not) and rounding up to nearest hundreds of feet.
  • If you select this altitude on a cold night, you'll be sniffing the terrain real tight due to altimeter temperature error

Edited November 7, 20214 yr by SAS443

Solution, only fly in the Netherlands or indeed any of these: Countries With The Lowest Average Elevations - WorldAtlas😉