Orcas Island to Petersburg
Hi,
Flew a similar route last May (2017).
Flew from Orcas Island, WA to Petersburg, AK. 760 Statute Miles, 5.2 hours used 29-gal of fuel. RV-6 160hp. Throttled back to 2100 rpm.
Over the Memorial weekend 2017, weather was clear, a tailwind at my cruise altitude helped, ave 146 mph at 12,500 ft. Yes, used oxygen.
Air was smooth, no bumps. Not many places to land!
Fuel at Petersburg is lowest price along the coast, however usually not open on weekends, call ahead if you plan to head there.
Planning a trip over the coast means you will need to flight plan and watch weather months in advance.
Alaska has weathercams available that are located in many mountain passes, and most importantly at many airfields. here is the link:
http://avcams.faa.gov/
Use the cams to verify your route weather, lots of them available along the coast as you can see!
Another useful tool for winds:
https://www.windy.com/?60.630,-150.870,8,m:fl4aW1 You can look several days ahead by going to the calendar at the bottom.
I use weatherunderground for my local weather, it is the most accurate I've found locally.
https://www.wunderground.com/weather/us/ak/kenai/99611
One search performed, type in weather history for the route naming different towns along the route. Lots of sites popped up with past history month by month, you can see averages that show rain, temps etc.. Helps give an answer to one of your questions about best time to fly.
For a direct overflight from the US over Canada to US with no stops, I filed an IACO flight plan per instructions. When I left Orcas Island, had to fly to the North to activate with Bellingham RCO. At that time was told the type of plan I filed was not available yet due to equipment not in place, they converted to a domestic flight plan.
Request flight following for the route if you fly the one I did. Using flight following helps with the restricted areas you will fly near/over. The biggest help was when entering Canadian Airspace, must be in contact with ATC.
Controllers were pleasant to talk to and they know where you're at if you have problems!
Expect some vectoring around Victoria and Vancouver airspace. I planned to climb to 12,500 ft during this transition, they had me hold at 8500ft, fly to the west to clear some jet traffic. I was at Comox before they told me to resume my own navigation. This took me a little off course.
Next time I will climb to my altitude before attempting the border crossing...
If you plan on stopping in Canada, you will to check out this link for more info:
https://travel.gc.ca/returning/customs/entering-canada
All in all, was very lucky on my day of travel. Knew months in advance of what the weather was going to be by constantly checking the above sites. Planned on a 4-day window 6-weeks in advance. Weather was as forecast, the actual day I flew! How lucky is that?
Hope you enjoy your flight!
BTW you will need specific survival gear, here is a link, however it is not the one I was hoping to find:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/alaska-minimum-required-survival-kit-by-law.118124/
Notice firearms are no longer required. Handguns will get you in trouble in Canada. I used to use a folding long gun .22 cal for my required firearm. This type will also get you in trouble in Canada.
Don't call a flare pistol, a pistol. It is a
hand held pyrotechnic signaling device!
Best regards,
Mike Bauer