My first mountain flight

[gkey]

I can do it too!!

My first flight last month into the mountains HAD to include a landing there as well. We flew into the northern part of the Alberta Rockies and chose to land at Hinton, AB.

It was quite eerie to see the ground coming closer, yet the altimeter stayed the same. It sounds stupid, but visually it can be daunting. The winds were quite a factor, rolling at almost 20 KTS off the mountains and in clear areas not really knowing which way they want to blow. With Hinton's airstrip on the crest of a hill, but still way lower than the surrounding topography, it feels like attempting to land in a tea cup. Depth perception got messed with a little, but I just trusted my instruments and made a perfect landing the first time.

Departure back home happened in a light snow flurry, and within 15 minutes we broke through to the bluest sky I've ever seen.