On Fri, 18 May 2007, scronje wrote:
but I fly to Missoula occasionally.

What altitudes do you typically fly at?

Sorry for the slow response, have been pretty busy lately.

Along that route, usually 10,500 - 11,500. It's not necessary to go that
high -- the pass is 5235 -- but that puts you above all the terrain near
the route, and way above most of it. Over that sort of terrain, I like to
go as high as practical to maximize options in case of a problem.
Actually, once you get up there, you see that there are a lot more options
for an emergency landing than one might imagine. That is, the airplane
may not go anywhere under its own power again, but you'd have a good
chance of walking out.

Good point, and already on my "to-do" list. I don't have any mountain
experience. I understand there is an operation out of Calgary that
offers training.

When you're a mile above the mountains, of course it's not really mountain
flying. But, you still have to get in/out of airports along the way, and
you need to be prepared for an emergency. I would say, don't be afraid to
make the trip without formal mountain flying training; but read up on it
first, and err on the side of caution when choosing your routes, planning
fuel stops, and making weather decisions, taking into account your skill,
knowledge, and comfort level.

AOPA has some reading material on their website:
http://www.aopa.org/asf/safety_topic...=TP12#mountain

-Dan