Pastor
The late Father James Kelly died flying the mountain pass between Dillingham and Togiak March 23, 2002. That is the first thing I thought about when I flew that exact same mountain pass yesterday, for the first time, January 26, 2010. I have avoided learning the complex route through the mountains from Dillingham to Togiak for that very reason. I will admit, I am a little afraid and a bit hesitant when I think about that perilous route.
Entrance to the Togiak mountain pass 12 miles West of Dillingham.
NKMOHILLs – 14.5 Nautical Miles (NM) West from Dillingham, Alaska
N 59°03.198’
W 158°58.458’
I have flown to Togiak several times but I always either flew over the top of the mountains or around them. After giving Robert, a Native Alaskan pilot from Penair in Dillingham, my Garmin GPS 550 to mark all of the waypoints along the twisty pass, I decided it was time to fly it myself.
I took off on a perfect day. The sun was not yet on the horizon at 9:30 AM. The sky was as clear as a bell. The white snowy mountains stood out majestically against the lightening sky. I flew toward the first waypoint Robert plotted on my GPS and leveled out at 1000 feet.
I chose a nice day to fly the pass because my mission was to test the waypoints Robert entered into my Garmin so that I can rely on them 100%. If I ever get stuck in bad weather flying through those mountains I want to know where these waypoints take me. As doubting Thomas would say, "I need to see and touch the nail holes."
Flying west through the mountain pass I approach the CHUTE. Robert marked both the East entrance (seen below) and the West entrance for me.
ECHUTE – 33.7 NM From Dillingham
N 59°01.213’
W159°35.504’
WCHUTE – 39.1 NM From Dillingham
N 58°58.273’
W 159°45.412’
West bound I arrive at Horseshoe and start to make the turn which will bring me to the last leg of the flight before I reach Togiak.
EHSHOE – 43.1 NM From Dillingham
N 58°57.401’
W 159°52.945’
HSHOE – 46.3 NM From Dillingham
N 58°59.095’
W 159°59.569’
Runway 03 in Togiak looms in the distance.
On final for runway 03 in Togiak, Alaska, I took one last picture before flying the pass again back to Dillingham. To reach Togiak the total flight took about 35 minutes or 60 miles.
Flying East bound toward Dillingham I took a shot of Summit, the highest point in the pass. It takes about 700-800 feet to clear Summit.
SUMMIT - 27.4 NM From Dillingham
N 59°00.581’
W159°23.108’
Fly safe out there!
2 comments:
You could not have picked a better person to mark your GPS points than Robert.
He is a well accomplished pilot!
Being a little scared happens all the time to GOOD pilots :-)
Stay safe as you visit all of us.
RR
Yes, I trust Robert with my life. Fr. Scott
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