Mxsmanic wrote:
Is it a bad idea to fly VFR at night and navigate by following highways?

My father-in-law (ANG helicopter crewman) takes "IFR" to mean "I Follow
Roads " (or rivers)

At night outside large cities, there doesn't seem to be much else that's
visible.
It seems to me that if you can clearly see the highway, it can guide you
and
you can get a good idea of where you are with respect to terrain, so it
should
work.

Sure. For example, Interstate 5 runs from Canada to Mexico, and the stretch
through most of Oregon looks like somebody drew a straight line with a
pencil across the landscape. If you were flying from Portland (possible
Seattle) to Eugene, Medford, Sacramento, etc, day or note you could follow
the freeway the entire route.

You'd still use your VFR navigation aids and checkpoints to make sure know
how far you are enroute, and also to avoid controlled airspace, etc, but
having that road, railroad, river makes for a more-enjoyable flight.

-c