MOST EPIC Route to Alaska! | Alaska Flying Adventure EP3

Alaska Flying Adventure continues! Which route is the mot EPIC one to Alaska? Coastal or Trench?
Today we are visiting Sean’s hangar at Paine Field airport (KPAE). The Seattle Class B airspace is so busy, even a 10 minutes flight from Renton (KRNT) to Paine Field (KPAE) can be challenging for unfamiliar pilots.
Paine Field airport is home to a lot of Boeing operations. We saw dozens of work-in-progress airplanes wrapping in green foil. This is quite a view for us!
Short after, we took off in a formation flight off to the US-Canada border. Sean guided us to circle around Mountain Baker before saying goodbye to us. This short formation flight is amazing in that, our Diamond Star and RV7 closely aligned for a circle around the snow-capped mountain top. After circling, Sean rocked his wing for a salute and said goodbye to us on the radio.
Thank you Sean for your hospitality and camaraderie!
After leaving Sean, we were just minutes away from the US-Canada border. We activated the flight plan and the US ATC handed us over to their Canadian colleagues. Navigating the Vancouver Class B airspace definitely took some energy. We climbed above the ceiling and kept a high altitude but still below the 125K which requires oxygen.
Most of trip was not covered by ATC’s radar. After Vancouver approach, we were pretty much on our own. There is few to zero emergency landing option for the most of the trip. However, the views from the air were just unparalleled! The snow mountains, glaciers and fjords were countless along the way. It all worth it despite the risk!
1 hour before the destination, we started to move towards the coast. The coastline looks very different, with green tree and grass coverage everywhere. The three grow right to the waterline, and that’s why there is very little emergency landing spot. Seasoned pilots suggested flying at low tide with the hope of some narrow beaches as alternate landing spots.
The weather on the coastal area is unpredictable. When we were 30 minutes away, the weather is borderline between IFR and VFR. We got a pop-up IFR clearance and later on the ATC directed us to the higher altitude. When we turn back the airport, we saw the conditions turn VFR as the airport is clearly beneath the cloud and cloud is definitely more than 5000 ft AGL.
We cancelled IFR and landed VFR easily. As we landed, the Ketchikan downtown with two gigantic cruise ships surrounded by the mountain cloud appeared on the other side of the straight.
Luckily, we found the last hotel with rooms and we were glad we don’t have to sleep on the streets! At night, we had a nice dinner with the signature Chowder at Annabelle’s, and it was delicious! When we got out, the cruise ship sailed and the harbor became quiet.

[@laurameng]

Amazing videos! Looking forward to the next episode!

[@VincentAir]

Thank you Laura! Coming soon... :)

[@GeezerGeekPilot]

Vincent, a very lovely video! In my friend Bill's C182, three of us this coming Saturday will be hoping for a similarly successful Seattle-to-Ketchikan leg. Looking forward to your future episodes, and you might check out ours on my channel. Thanks for posting. Wayne (DA40 KSBA)

[@VincentAir]

Awesome 😎 Thanks for the nice comments! Wish you three all the best on the trip! I am sure you will make lifetime memories in Alaska. Will check out your channel for sure.