First Oshkosh, flying from California
Greetings,
I'm flying from Central California to OSH in my 182 for the first time this year and am looking for route ideas/suggestions. We're thinking about stopping at KRAP to visit Mt Rushmore on the way and touring the Grand Canyon on the way back. Other than that any stops you would recommend are greatly appreciated!
Congratulations on your first trek to Oshkosh! I am not sure which route you will be flying so here are some favorite places of mine along the way:
KSLC - Salt Lake City, UT. Lots of interesting things to see here but if your just stopping for fuel, be sure to hit the Red Iguana. It's an amazing Mexican restaurant near the airport.
Colorado - I'm not sure how adventurous you want to be here. There are some incredible airports in the mountains like Telluride and Aspen but they take careful planning and preparation. If you do decide to stop in Aspen, take the drive to Glenwood Springs, CO. It's one of the most beautiful drives in the US and you can hit the natural hot springs while you're there.
If you want a much easier CO stop, hit Denver Centennial airport KAPA. Centennial is in the front range just past the mountains. Beautiful views and you can go visit the Air Force Academy while you're there. It's an awesome stop. Also, be sure to hit the "Perfect Landing" restaurant on the field.
From there, stop in Forest City, Iowa. There isn't much there but the family that runs the airport are some of the best folks around and love visitors. The fuel is cheap and you can ride in to town and hit Shooters, the local sports bar. Good food. Also, if you're into RV's (the camping kind) this is the home of Winnebago so you can tour the plant.
Since you're planning to go to KRAP, I highly recommend a stop in Spearfish KSPF. It's not far from Rapid City and is a truly beautiful airport nestled into a neat valley approach from the north. You can get a car there and drive out to Sturgis where they host the Sturgis Bike Rallly if you're into that.
Anyway, those are a few of my suggestions. If you do venture into the mountains, be smart and pay attention to density altitude and weight and remember the weather can change quick out there.
Have ver a safe and fun journey! See you at Oshkosh!
Unless you have had mountain training and are proficient operating in high density altitudes (10K' to over 12K' on the ground), then I recommend avoiding places like Aspen, Telluride, and the rest of the central Rockies. We'd love to have you visit Colorado, but get some training before venturing into our mountains. Interstate 80 to Cheyenne, then down the Front Range to Denver is an alternative.
Bill
N222AB
Fort Collins, CO
If you want to avoid the high mountains on the return westbound, head for Albuquerque and then west to the Grand Canyon. Farmington, NM used to have a very good airport restaurant. Thermals make it really bumpy in the afternoon. Make sure to look at a copy of the Grand Canyon special flight rules area chart before you get there.
We visited Rapid City a couple years ago and found there's a whole lot more than just Mt. Rushmore in the area. Custer State Park is a wonderful place. Several caves in the area, Badlands National Park, Minuteman Missile National Historic Site. Check out reservations if you're interested in the last. And, of course, the premier tourist trap in the entire world, Wall Drug in Wall, SD. If you're into geology, the wall it's named after is pretty interesting too.
I have made that round trip at least 14-times. I hit weather on the northern route heading west 3 out of 4 times. Spent two different westbound trips over night in Page due to weather. Could have made it home but the afternoon thunderstorms prevented it. One trip I tried to see if I could get around and ended up spend the night in Flagstaff.
The Southern Route is much more friendly with more airports and survivable off airport emergency landing places. Typically I would depart SoCAL and make first fuel stop at KSJN. Have used KINW but fuel is typically less expensive at KSJN. From there, you have options. Fly just south of the rocks toward KLVS, KRTN, KLHX, KLBF, and KOVS. KOVS is a nice stop before heading into KOSH.
On long Cross-Country trips, I do not mind paying Five or Ten-cents more per gallon of AvGas at one airport over another but object to paying $1 per gallon more. I use http://www.airnav.com/plan/fuel/ to plan a flight with fuel stops. AirNav also helps find airports that have lodging. I typically never fly more than 8-hours in one day. If you use Foreflight on an iPad, it has 100LL database for fuel prices. The past two years, 100LL appears to be close to the prices listed on AirNav.
Hope this helps.
Gary A. Sobek
EAA Lifetime Member
A&P, Homebuilder, Pilot
When once you have tasted flight,
you will forever walk the earth
with your eyes turned skyward,
for there you have been,
and there you will always long to return.
- Leonardo da Vinci
Yep, Air-Nav & 100LL.com are great planning tools, runway layouts & services too. The next thing I look for is the best tailwind. Once terrain is cleared & airspace isn't a factor the magenta line works well. Fire up that XM weather too.
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