August 28, 20223 yr The Pacific Fjords in western North America is a beautiful and fascinating region. It's abundantly filled with unique geographical features, such as high coastal mountains, picturesque inland passages, hidden lakes, dense pine forests, and, of course, the desolate (and cold) icefields and glaciers...etc. Here, below, is a collection of pictures I snapped from a short (virtual) trip I took today, of just about ~120 nms, staring from CYXT (Northwest Regional Airport Terrace-Kitimat, located 3 nms south of Terrace, British Columbia, Canada) to CZST (Stewart Aerodrome adjacent to Stewart, also located in British Columbia, Canada). I tracked the inland passageways over land and water, maneuvering between the mountains, on either side, rising above me, sometimes, as high as 11,000 ft. or higher (see shots, below). For my cruise, I maintained a steady altitude of ~8,000 ft., while navigating between these mountains (and along their narrow valleys). At times, the mountains appeared to come up precariously (and uncomfortably) close to my little (single-engined) Rockwell Commander 114...🙂...a bit of (virtual) daydreaming here...but, as I flew on further in this a/c, better I liked it, and more confident I felt with it...(btw, if you like the Beech Bonanza, you would like this plane too, it looks similar to the straight-tail Model 35...not the V-tail...). Below, in my close-up shots of the [VC] flightdeck (at bottom LHS of it), please note, particularly, the classic (but simple and effective) Century II Autopilot Panel of this plane, with those (old-style) "Rocker" type Autopilot switches... En-route my trip, I saw so many snow-capped mountains, but I did also see plenty of green vegetation. This (short) ~120 nm trip, indeed, packed a remarkable punch in terms of variety and excitement. On top of it, I have chosen to make it all a bit of an extra challenge by creating an (artificial) "fogged-in" condition at lower altitudes... (see screenshots, below), consequently, most of the mountains appeared half-shrouded in a (mysterious and dangerous) coating of fog and mist... I've broken my (adventure) flight into 2-parts, retaining, for Part II, the pictures from the approach and landing into CZST (Stewart) Runway 36, in the (challenging) fogged-in (near white-out) condition, an experience that was actually quite a nail-biter, to be honest, you'll see why...🙂... So, here we go...the (Rockwell) Commander 114 lifting off from Kitimat (CYXT) and headed into the Fjords and mountains of the Northwest, on its way to Stewart (CZST). Hope you enjoy these (Part I) pictures...and please stay tuned for Part II...!! Thanks for your interest...! [Orbx (PFJ/CZST), Carenado (Rockwell Commander 114)]
August 28, 20223 yr Author Thanks, Alaska, John, Frank...!! [John: You would know the area well...I presume... (never been north of Seattle/WA on the West Coast...maybe one day...) ...]
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