tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post6555912665067198566..comments2024-03-13T09:47:40.487+00:00Comments on Cockpit Conversation: Sweet, We're In Alaska!Aviatrixhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-77769348499365923802010-08-19T06:12:42.515+00:002010-08-19T06:12:42.515+00:00Definitely lots of pilots in Alaska. Apparently pl...Definitely lots of pilots in Alaska. Apparently plenty of people commute to work by flying to the smaller airport in Anchorage where they keep their car parked (in the plane parking space) and driving from there to work. And I've seen a restaurant on a lake with parking in front for cars and a dock in the back for planes. And caviar sandwiches really are pretty common in Anchorage too. My grandparents lived there and would get a whole salmon from the fish market then take out the egg sac with the caviar inside.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-70735794861477836512010-08-17T23:51:51.943+00:002010-08-17T23:51:51.943+00:00Ha ha, grant I very nearly ended my last comment w...Ha ha, <b>grant</b> I very nearly ended my last comment with "but I do know what a pingo is!" I thought no one else would. <br /><br />I'll have to take you flying with me sometime and you can tell me what all the neat stuff is.Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-41521869882310632672010-08-17T23:41:17.528+00:002010-08-17T23:41:17.528+00:00And I thought all that time earning a BSc in Geogr...And I thought all that time earning a BSc in Geography was wasted when I changed career paths to become a pilot! You just can't say when knowing your eskers from your morraines will Save The Day!! <br /><br />Fly low 'N slow and watch out for <a href="http://www.pc.gc.ca/docs/v-g/pingo/index_E.asp" rel="nofollow">Pingo!</a>grantnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-35961201719287091082010-08-17T23:33:36.314+00:002010-08-17T23:33:36.314+00:00And the big pile of rocks you have to climb over t...And the big pile of rocks you have to climb over to get onto the glacier is the terminal moraine, the only kind of moraine with which I was familiar before this discussion.Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-69344408227133150602010-08-17T23:24:50.992+00:002010-08-17T23:24:50.992+00:00BTW, Lateral moraines are at the edge of a glacier...BTW, Lateral moraines are at the edge of a glacier, the debris strips within the glacier are <i> medial </i> moraines. The result when two glaciers flow together and their respective lateral moraines are included within the larger glacier. <a href="http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/lemke/alpine_glacial_glossary/landforms/medial.html" rel="nofollow">Here's a page which has photos illustrating the concept. </a>A Squarednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-67757384577391332010-08-17T22:22:09.452+00:002010-08-17T22:22:09.452+00:00The glacier in the photo is the Matanuska Glacier....The glacier in the photo is the Matanuska Glacier. I wasn't disputing that the Matanuska is pictured, only that the off-airport mecca of south-central Alaska is located there. That's below the Knik Glacier.A Squarednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-6610421193216854862010-08-17T21:23:16.537+00:002010-08-17T21:23:16.537+00:00A Squared: Yes, thank you. It was definitely Menta...<b>A Squared</b>: Yes, thank you. It was definitely Mentasta. Now I just need consensus on my roadlike--lateral moraine-- glacier to the east of the Glenn Highway, before the valley narrows approaching Anchorage.Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-35329176447568392262010-08-17T21:13:39.320+00:002010-08-17T21:13:39.320+00:00I still am not sure of the name of the pass, but i...<i> I still am not sure of the name of the pass, but it did have an RCO tight in it, and there can't be that many like that in that area. </i><br /><br />Mentasta Pass. My partner used to administer water and sanitation for the village of Mentasta which is in the vicinity of the lake just barely visible past the curve in the highwayA Squarednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-82537773486726958862010-08-17T18:28:32.736+00:002010-08-17T18:28:32.736+00:00That's odd. I got an error that the comment wa...That's odd. I got an error that the comment was too long to process, so I split it into two, then I realized it had posted anyway.Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-80700291503263705572010-08-17T18:26:34.797+00:002010-08-17T18:26:34.797+00:00mattheww50: Aviation night doesn't work like R...<b>mattheww50</b>: Aviation night doesn't work like Ramadan. It starts not at sunset but at the end of evening civil twilight and runs to the beginning of morning civil twilight. As you can see from <a href="http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/astronomy.html?n=18&month=6&year=2010&obj=sun&afl=-13&day=1" rel="nofollow">this table</a> for most of June (yes, I'm that far behind on blogging), civil twilight never ends, so night never legally falls.<br /><br /><b>kbq</b>: We always hope our accommodations will be better than that. It's not clear whether <i>you</i> were poking the holes, or that was a gift from the previous occupants.<br /><br /><b>EchoJuliet/A Squared</b>: We thought we were following the Alaska Highway into Anchorage until afterwards when we realized that the Alaska Highway goes to Fairbanks and we essentially took the Glenn Highway cutoff by Tok. It was one mountain pass east of the one the Glenn Highway takes. I still am not sure of the name of the pass, but it did have an RCO tight in it, and there can't be that many like that in that area.<br /><br />I'll have to post all my glacier pics and let you guys name them for me, because we did a lot more of "wow, look at that!" than we did careful identification. The glacier pictured is definitely not the closest one to Anchorage along the Glenn Highway. There was another one much closer.<br /><br /><b>Daniel</b>: A few reasons that vary from case to case. We usually don't carry enough seats in the airplane for a full crew, because seats are bulky and we need the space for the real work. Weightwise, we likely couldn't have accommodated that many people, required fuel and everyone's baggage. They had to go south to get gear they needed anyway, and not everyone thinks four hour legs in a non-washroom equipped airplane are as fun as the pilots do.<br /><br />Thanks for all the comments and information. There will be lots of odd errors and misconceptions in my posts for this trip, because I really prefer to give you my impressions over researching what I really saw. I usually do have more pictures and details than I post, so if you ask, I can provide more.Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-29975140831251272532010-08-17T16:10:11.422+00:002010-08-17T16:10:11.422+00:00" Tok: Used to be called Tokyo until world wa...<i>" Tok: Used to be called Tokyo until world war two."</i><br /><br /> The town of Tok didn't exist until WWII well after Pearl Harbor. Add to that the fact that it is near the Tok River, which was labeled as such on maps dating back to 1901 and this starts to seem pretty implausible. <br /><br /><i>" The Alaska Highway follows the Matanuska valley. "</i><br /><br />The Alaska highway doesn't come anywhere near the Matanuska Valley. If you use Tahneta Pass and the easternmost point of the Matanuska Valley, the closest the Alaska highway comes to the Matanuska Valley is about 150 nautical miles. The road up the Matanuska Valley is the Glenn Highway, which doesn't even intersect the Alaska Highway. <br /><br /><i>"The braided river that flows from that glacier is a VERY popular place for super cubbers to go bar hopping. "</i> <br /><br />I think you may be confusing the Knik with the Matanuska. The Knik Glacier outwash is in a broad valley with lots of flat area for ad-hoc landing sites. The Matanuska Glacier empties into a comparatively steep constricted valley. I suppose that you could go there for practicing off airport landings, but in 25 years of flying in Southcentral Alaska, I've never heard anyone mention it.A Squarednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-16424433533739003192010-08-17T13:52:29.604+00:002010-08-17T13:52:29.604+00:00Why don't the customers travel with you, since...Why don't the customers travel with you, since you're going the right way anyway?Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14797197005974855806noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-50909211404706042352010-08-17T07:09:19.627+00:002010-08-17T07:09:19.627+00:00This comment has been removed by the author.Echojuliethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14176325221080989545noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-19752041603268663942010-08-17T06:28:52.111+00:002010-08-17T06:28:52.111+00:00All I remember of Alaska and Russian is from decad...All I remember of Alaska and Russian is from decades ago: Shemya. I was told if one was stationed there, your sworn duty was to spend spare time lugging pocketfuls of rocks from the north side to the south, in hopes of relocating the island closer to Hawaii. And a warning of the fun times had poking pinholes in the plastic sheeting above the bunks... (part of the insulation - it would guarantee constant drips!).<br /><br />Hope you had fun!<br /><br />Kevinkbqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00991038610362146409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-85655835307279618592010-08-17T02:43:24.554+00:002010-08-17T02:43:24.554+00:00I arrived at ANC from Japan several times in the 1...I arrived at ANC from Japan several times in the 1990's. I think it is the only place I have ever been where there were more Customs and Immigration officials than passengers!<br /><br />As far as 24 hours daylight goes, you need to get a lot further north. Anchorage peaks at about a 20 hour day(sunrise-sunset).<br /><br />There is something weird however about it being 11PM and daylight...mattheww50https://www.blogger.com/profile/00898846687006155502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-27731421568285208242010-08-17T02:04:08.264+00:002010-08-17T02:04:08.264+00:00Awesome! Those strips in the glaciers are called &...Awesome! Those strips in the glaciers are called "lateral moraines" by the way. Basically rock debris.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-76090854810559553832010-08-17T01:51:52.581+00:002010-08-17T01:51:52.581+00:00Christopher: I do get to speak Russian on this tri...<b>Christopher</b>: I do get to speak Russian on this trip.Aviatrixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13634111275860140084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-65653603242056110562010-08-17T01:13:11.830+00:002010-08-17T01:13:11.830+00:00Crossing the Bering Sea?Crossing the Bering Sea?Christopherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16571759509920722235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10000144.post-84274740722787040142010-08-17T00:10:36.422+00:002010-08-17T00:10:36.422+00:00He was the namesake of the airport.He was the namesake of the airport.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com