Jay Honeck wrote:
Stehekin

I had to look this one up -- and even then, their webpage was designed
from the standpoint that everyone *must* know where "Stehekin" is. It
took some poking around to figure out it's in Washington State.

Looks nice, though. I've got a sister out in Sequim, WA, maybe I'll
have to check this place out?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Hi Jay,

Thought I'd pass on some airport info regarding Stehekin, and other
state airports.

This airport, along with several others, are owned/operated by the
Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). Their state
airport home page is located he

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/aviation/Airports/default.htm

The particular page for Stehekin is located he

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/aviation/Airports/Stehekin.htm

I have been told, by people much smarter than me, that this strip is
more geared for pilots and aircraft that are setup for backcountry
operations. A friend of mine used to work for WSDOT and flew in there
from time to time. He came in in a Cessna 182 (I think), with beefed up
gear to handle the roughness of the strip. The biggie here, along with
several backcountry strips, is the density altitude during the summer.
In this part of Washington, summer daytime temperatures can reach into
the mid 90s. Do the math and you may find out that Atlas might be able
to get in, but may not be able to get out unless weight is shed and/or a
very early morning departure is done so that you could take advantage of
cooler temps. In addition, your landing gear will get one helluva
workout. At this strip, you happen to have a remote WX station there.
It's not AWOS/ASOS, but it provides very basic info. The address is:

http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mesowest/get...1&num=48&raw=0

The site is currently down at the moment, but I guess that it should be
back up in time for flying season.

If you desire to visit your sister out here, and you would like to get a
"small" taste of "mountain ops", may I suggest the airport at Easton.
Info on this strip is located he

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/aviation/Airports/Easton.htm

In addition, there is another strip that should handle Atlas nicely.
It's the strip at Tieton. The info on this strip is located he

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/aviation/Airports/Tieton.htm

I have a friend that has operated her Apache there without any major
problems.

I must state that, in the interest of "full disclosure" that I am not a
pilot/aircraft owner. However I know quite a number of pilots with a
lot of backcountry experience. In fact, many of the pilots who frequent
this NG have a lot more knowledge than I do. They should be able to
provide you with backcountry "tips and hints" that I do not know. I
would like to see you be able to operate Atlas safely in our area. Many
pilots love to operate in the backcountry. I think you'll like it too.
Just keep your limitations in mind so you don't "screw the pooch".

Thanks for the read.

Rick