Ottawa to California route

CaptPeteCaptPete
in General Discussion
I'm planning a trip from Southern Ontario to California and was wondering what the best route would be through the mountains. I'm sure there's a few preferred routes that people use.

I'm flying a normally aspirated Lance with O2.

Comments

  • JoeBJoeB
    The general rule of thumb in the States is to follow the westbound freeways. Except skip I-70 west of Denver - when it comes to the hard part it tunnels through the continental divide. You'll find that hard to follow. I-80 (Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, CA) is a good route to the San Francisco area. I-40 (NM, AZ, CA) is a good route into Southern California. On the backside of the "Front Range" there's a reasonable N-S dodge from Wyoming down over Grand Junction CO, and then down the Colorado River towards Lake Powell, Grand Canyon, and Vegas, then west to Southern CA. Forget about anything east-west through Colorado unless you're turbo'd - that's just a wall of rock. Be flexible - weather may block one route or the other. Better to fly half a day out of your way than to wait on the ground for three. Obviously it's straightforward to sidestep from one route to the other on the eastern (Plains) side of the Rockies.

    Normally aspirated (as I am) you can forget about IFR through those mountains. At this time of year you'll find icing at the MEA's - assuming you can get up to them. Fortunately in that country when the weather isn't totally awfull the visibility is great.

    Regards,
    Joe
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