Yukon Bush Pilot

[YukonGirl]

My dream has been to follow in the steps of the bush pilots who carved trails in the skies above Alaska and the Yukon. If you want to get a taste of what it's like to fly near the Arctic Circle, check out my YouTube video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkWK80ZNqfM

[captain2k_ca]

There is no doubt that bush pilots are among the finest pilots in the world! Able to make planes do things most "sane" people would find terrifying! Welcome to Huntchat!

[YukonGirl]

Thanks for the welcome, captain2k_ca. I agree with your opinion 100%. I can only dream of ever being a fraction as good as them.

[wrenchman]

welcome to the sight hope to see you poste more we only have a couple girls that post with any degrea.
I have been on a couple bush flights and both times were hi points in my life as well for most other hunter and fisherman so i think they are thought of in very hi regard every were they thend to be.

[skeet]

Welcome to HC. Nice to see another gal here. The first time I flew up there(1968 or so) was a unique experience for me. It was much cooler than the area I had been flying. Rocky can tell ya more about the temps there. Flew into some really scary places in SE Asia. Most of the places I landed in Canada and Alaska were pretty good for gravel strips. And 30 yrs ago you had a tendency, if a newbie to the area, to stick close to the roads. Gooder places to land, don'cha know. Just in case of emergencies. Those mountains and trees are pretty hard! First flight on my own to Alaska was in a Cessna 170B. Wish I had kept it!!

[YukonGirl]

You know what the funny thing is? When I'm up in the air, I'm often looking down at lakes and such thinking, "Gee, I'd like to be down there with a line in the water." And then when I'm out fishing, I look up and see a plane and think, "Wow, I'd give anything to be on that floatplane heading to wherever it's going."

I guess that's why fishing for lunkers off the side of a floatplane sounds so appealing-- I can sort of fish and fly at the same time... Or maybe I should trail a line out the window as I taxi. It gives new meaning to trolling.

[Larryjk]

YukonGirl, It has been a long time. Are you still living in Tagish? How is the Yukon treating you?

[YukonGirl]

Hi Larry! Yes, it's been too long... What have you been up to? I'm still in the Yukon, been busy producing and hosting a weekly podcast show. It's called My Yukon Life, and every week I feature a different special guest from the Yukon. This upcoming Monday will be fly tyer Claudia MacPhee. I also feature Yukon trappers, outfitters, bush pilots, etc. Check it out sometime-- I need all the listeners I can get! You can listen to the podcasts on the podcast page of www.MyYukonLife.com. And thanks for saying hi.

[Dan Morris]

Welcome back!
Dan:cool:

[wrenchman]

yes it is nice to see you back

[Larryjk]

I see you are making a "place" for yourself. I will be on the computer on Monday to try to catch your podcast.

[Dom]

Enjoyed your video YukonGirl, glad you are enjoying the wilderness, very nice area, but like you say, can be brutal at times and you have to keep your wits. Good luck.

[Larryjk]

Yukon Girl, I listened to the podcast but how do I get to the video Dom refers to?

[YukonGirl]

Larry, apologies for not seeing your question until now... Here's the video I did awhile back on flying and other adventures in the Yukon: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkWK80ZNqfM. (I think that's the link you're looking for.)

[Larryjk]

YukonGirl, After watching the NGC show on flying in Alsaka I got a new road map to see where the roads could take me in Alaska _ not far. I can understand the roads being centralized where the main population resides. It will take more time. It was really interesting watching the "Flying Alaska" show and seeing what some of the villages are like. Some of the runways are much better than I had anticipated. Does Tagish have a runway?

[YukonGirl]

Tagish doesn't have a public runway, but there's one in the next village over, about 20 minutes (by car) away. It's a gravel strip (complete with the occasional gopher holes) located in Carcross, Yukon. Some nasty crosswinds there sometimes, but it's a fun little place to fly into. Beside it is a nice area for floatplane landings/takeoffs and parking.

[Larryjk]

YukonGirl, :You asked about the map where I located Tagish. It is shown on a new road map I got from Alaska DOT. I wanted to see where new roads have gone in since I worked there in the late 60s and early 70s. I saw Tagish in the southwest corner of Yukon territory, just north of the border with B.C. and east of Alaska. I saw the big city of Carcross, and the lake shown in your pictures. There is a lot of the Yukon north of you; lots of places to explore.