Alaska mountain, backcountry, and float plane training

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Ben E.

Filing Flight Plan
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Apr 25, 2017
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Ben E.
I'm planning a long overdue trip to Alaska this summer and will likely be going alone, so I was thinking as a pilot that the best trip for me would be one where I get to see the state from the air and do some flying. About me: I have my private pilot's license (SEL) and will be taking my instrument checkride in the next few weeks. I also will be doing tail wheel training at Andover, NJ in a J-3 cub before I go to Alaska.

I know there's some Alaskan pilots on here and others that have flown in Alaska, so I was hoping you guys could help me out! Basically I want to get my sea plane rating and get instruction and practice in big mountain flying, as well as learn to land "bush" planes in backcountry spots. I will probably be there for two weeks so I should have time to do all this.

I'm a big outdoors/nature guy and would really like to see as much of remote Alaska as possible, especially big mountains, rivers, and lakes. If I could get some fishing in while in the backcountry that would be amazing too!

Good, safe training from an experienced pilot is important to me. If anyone can point me in the right direction or recommend an instructor/school I would really appreciate it. Also, I would like to know when you guys think the best time to go would be.
 
I was born in Alaska, learned to fly at 16, and flew floatplanes and bush planes there for decades. My twin brother still has a Cessna 185 and a Scout based at Soldotna. I live in the lower 48 now, but I have been hearing that tailwheel and float instruction is not as easy to come by as in the past, especially if you don't have the aircraft, and need to rent.

I have not used this guy personally, but I have heard some good things about his operation. He is based at Willow, just a little NW of Anchorage.

http://legendsalaska.com/
 
I got my seaplane rating in Alaska 2 years ago. Awesome experience. I did a fair amount of research and ended up going to these guys: https://www.alaskafloatratings.com/ it's located in a tiny little town called Moose Pass about two hours south of Anchorage. You train in Super Cubs, which are a blast to fly. The area around Moose Pass is mountainous with tons of lakes, so you get a wide variety of situations, which is great. The owner, Vern, is a character.
 
mr_happyland said:
I got my seaplane rating in Alaska 2 years ago. Awesome experience. I did a fair amount of research and ended up going to these guys: https://www.alaskafloatratings.com/ it's located in a tiny little town called Moose Pass about two hours south of Anchorage. You train in Super Cubs, which are a blast to fly. The area around Moose Pass is mountainous with tons of lakes, so you get a wide variety of situations, which is great. The owner, Vern, is a character.
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I'm going with mr_happy on this one. I reread your post and see that you don't really need tailwheel instruction in Alaska, just floats. Supercubs are way more fun than 172s on floats. I grew up a few miles from Moose Pass. It is lovely spot. The Trail Lakes (adjacent to Moose Pass) are large and great for float training.
 
If you'd rather go a bit north of Anchorage (Talkeetna), I highly recommend Alaska Floats and Skis (http://alaskafloats.com/). A fellow by the name of Don Lee runs it. I flew with him a bunch several years ago. He's a good guy. Jeff Skyles did a series of articles about flying with him in EAA's Sport Aviation.
 
Here's a short film I made of my trip there...the last half of it has footage I shot of the float planes at Moose Pass.

 
Thanks for the helps guys. These are great leads.
 
mr_happyland said:
Here's a short film I made of my trip there...the last half of it has footage I shot of the float planes at Moose Pass.

Click to expand...
That's some real nice footage. What camera did you use for that?
 
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