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28AUG2021 Photo Flight: Destination Denali The Great One

mbauer

Well Known Member
Vans RV-6 are awesome. Want to go up high, better bring some oxygen. They'll for sure go higher than you can breathe.

Been waiting for a day like the conditions met on August 28, 2021. Beautiful blue sky with some cloud layers north of Denali and Mt Foraker. Windy ty showed no winds near the peak of Denali.
Loaded up my oxygen system , topped off the tanks, Denali is almost 500 Miles round trip.

Local conditions were CAVU and staying that way. Just to the West of my planned route towards the peaks, there were some head winds at 14,000+ ft. Great! Stay below them and I could cruise almost all the way to Mt Foraker without much of a headwind.

Planned altitude for the trip up is 12,500ft until ready to cross the Alaska Range to get some photos of the North Face.

By approaching Mt Foraker from the West, I will basically complete a 360° photo opportunity.

The West will be covered on the approach.

Crossing over the Alaska Range to the West of Foraker, I will do a right turn and fly towards the East. This will give me full view of the North face.

A final turn to the right giving a Southern heading will take me home.

Today’s photos will be combo photos showing what the view really looks like.

Here is a screenshot of my GPS:
Denali 8-28-21.jpg

I live in Nikiski, Alaska. We are considered a village. I’m helping a crew to try and incorporate Nikiski into a legal city. If we do, a certain mountain that is part of the Tordrillo Mountain Range will become the highest point in our new city.

Sight seeing on the way to Denali, the first photo is the Tordrillo Mountains and glaciers. To the left the first steep snow peak is Mt Spur. Mt Tobert is the next biggest mountain as you travel along the ridge. It will be the highest point in our new city. 11,413ft high.
127-139 Spur 8-28-2021.jpg


Denali has a map. You have to follow certain routes and rules to fly there. Below 15,500ft there is a frequency map and points of control:
Denali Freq.JPG


Most commercial flight operators are below 11,500ft when flying. At 17,500 I was well above all traffic on the radio.

As I cross over Skweentna, Alaska, Mt Foraker is huge in the distance.

Time to take some photos and initiate a climb to 14,500. Want 14,500 well before the Alaska Range, eventually I'll be level at 17,500ft, just shy of 3,000ft below the peak of Denali.
191-197Foraker-Denali 8-28-2021.jpg


I cross over the Alaska Range at 17,500ft, throttling back to start taking photos of the side I don’t see very often, the North Face.
306-311 North.jpg

A different angle showing both peaks Mt Foraker in the Front Denali in the back
406-417 Denali-Foraker.jpg

Looking Directly at Mt Foraker Northwest face
DSC_0363 Mt Foraker.jpg

More photos to follow.

Mike
 
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August 28, 2021 Cont.

Final photos of The Alaska Range Stars;

Looking East at Mt Foraker and Denali:
Foraker-Denali.jpg

361-365 Foraker-Denali.jpg

Mt Denali showing off North Face angle and steepness:
DSC_0432 Denali.jpg

The Top of The Great one-South Peak is highest at 20,310ft. My altitude of 17,500ft means I'm 2810ft below the top.
DSC_0503 Top of Denali.jpg

Top zoom:
DSC_0511 Top Zoom Denali.jpg


Flying past them heading East, a turn to the right and a Southern heading, here is looking back towards the West as I cross the Alaska Range Again, Denali is in the front, Mt Foraker in the Middle and the Alaska Range the rest of the way.DSC_0532 Denali Front-Mt Foraker Middle-Alaska Range.jpg

A quick view looking South towards Nikiski:
DSC_0553 View looking South.jpg

Denali The Great One looking Northwest from the East:
594-604 Denali-Foraker 8-28-2021.jpg

Please note:

I took these photos at 17,500 to show the view that most Cessna's and Pipers wish they could see. Just showing them some empathy and letting them see the places that they aspire too but can't reach. After all if you want ground level photos a car can work over on the Park's Highway!

My Rv-6 wasn't even breathing hard. Still showing 2600rpm available, but I was down to 2300rpm for the photos and it still wanted to climb at that rpm.

Well that's it for this trip. Planning a trip next February-hoping for a blue sky day with winter snow to view.

Mike
 
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Stunning pictures, Mike. Looks like a perfect day to fly! Thanks for sharing them.
 
Wow

Thanks so much for the beautiful scenery and trip write up. I’ve often said that the RV-6 is still the Best Buy for the buck…one reason that I owned mine for 11 years.

Thanks again,
 
What a great trip!

Mike,

Stunning photos. What wonderful machines these are.

Blue skies

Geoff
 
View from above...

Final photos of The Alaska Range Stars;

Looking East at Mt Foraker and Denali:
I took these photos at 17,500 to show the view that most Cessna's and Pipers wish they could see. Just showing them some empathy and letting them see the places that they aspire too but can't reach.

My Rv-6 wasn't even breathing hard. Still showing 2600rpm available, but I was down to 2300rpm for the photos and it still wanted to climb at that rpm.

Well that's it for this trip. Planning a trip next February-hoping for a blue sky day with winter snow to view.

Mike

Hey Mike, thanks for sharing, haven't seen that view since looking down thru the gold tinted canopy of the F16C on a AK deployment many moons ago. Simply phenomenal :)

My wingman and I commented many times about the scenery while dogfighting in the Susitna MOA just south. Pretty hard to concentrate on the mission with Denali closeby!

And, thanks again for the amazing Lithos, enjoy them greatly!
V/R
Smokey
 
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