Planning US Coast-to-coast trip

[Tomek Zielinski]

Hi,

In a month time from now I plan to start my 20 to 25 days VFR flying
trip in C-172 from San Diego to the East Coast (hopefully to Key West)
and back.

I published my initial planning on the internet, here is the link:
http://www.astercity.net/~tomekz/us_coast_to_coast_2005_planning.htm

I tried to plan the route in such a way that stops are near some
tourist attractions (National Parks, museums, etc.), of course I
cannot include all attractions on the way because then the trip would
have to take much longer than 20-25 days. Naturally this is just an
initial plan, at the end of the day the route and how far we will get
will depend entirely on weather.

I would very much appreciate your comments and suggestions about my
route, airports I have chosen (or should choose) and places to visit
along this route.

I also intend to make another page with the report from the trip
progress (with photos of course ;-)) that I will try to update during
the trip.

cheers,

Tomek Zielinski
PP-ASEL

[Morgans]

"Tomek Zielinski" > wrote in message
om...
> Hi,
>
> In a month time from now I plan to start my 20 to 25 days VFR flying
> trip in C-172 from San Diego to the East Coast (hopefully to Key West)
> and back.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Sounds like a blast!

What kinds of activities do you love, like, dislike, and hate? That would
help everyone to advise you on things to see and do.
--
Jim in NC

[Casey Wilson]

"Tomek Zielinski" > wrote in message
om...
> Hi,
>
> In a month time from now I plan to start my 20 to 25 days VFR flying
> trip in C-172 from San Diego to the East Coast (hopefully to Key West)
> and back.
>
> I published my initial planning on the internet, here is the link:
> http://www.astercity.net/~tomekz/us_coast_to_coast_2005_planning.htm
>

<<<Snip >>>

That sounds and looks like a great trip. I'm planning the same idea but
from CenCal to Galveston, TX, to Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and return. I'm
thinking about visiting some of the aviation museums along the way. I'll
probably do a lot of my planning with Jay's web site, he's got a great list.
You won't be disappointed with the Houston Space Center, but then Corpus
Christi has some great attractions. In either case, I suggest a stop in
Galveston(KGLS) for the aviation museum there.
Another suggestion, after you leave Bryce Canyon area, your route takes
you very close to Zion Canyon, another dramatic geological area, and then
down through the Virgin River Gorge. Look for them in the vicinity of KSGU
(St. George, UT).
Keep an eye on the weather along the gulf coast. Things can change
rapidly during that part of the year.
Have a great trip. I'll be keeping an eye on your website for updates.

Casey

[Blanche]

Consider HND Henderson rather than VGT in Las Vegas. They are
about the same distance from LAS but I think HND is easier to
get out and over to the Grand Canyon.

[Tomek Zielinski]

First of all I would like to thank for all your thoughts so far, they
are extremely helpful.

Jim is right I should have said something about what I like and
dislike.

I love flying, aviation and kite surfing (one of the reasons why I
want to
stop in Corpus Cristi).
I like hiking the mountains, riding the bike, walking scenic trails,
visiting interesting (architecturally for instance) towns.
I dislike organized tours.

cheers,

Tomek Zielinski
PP-ASEL

[Robert M. Gary]

WOW! That sounds like fun! I wish I could go!!!

-Robert

[NW_PILOT]

I just returned form a flying adventure in South FL, Watch the AFB near key
west.



"Tomek Zielinski" > wrote in message
om...
> Hi,
>
> In a month time from now I plan to start my 20 to 25 days VFR flying
> trip in C-172 from San Diego to the East Coast (hopefully to Key West)
> and back.
>
> I published my initial planning on the internet, here is the link:
> http://www.astercity.net/~tomekz/us_coast_to_coast_2005_planning.htm
>
> I tried to plan the route in such a way that stops are near some
> tourist attractions (National Parks, museums, etc.), of course I
> cannot include all attractions on the way because then the trip would
> have to take much longer than 20-25 days. Naturally this is just an
> initial plan, at the end of the day the route and how far we will get
> will depend entirely on weather.
>
> I would very much appreciate your comments and suggestions about my
> route, airports I have chosen (or should choose) and places to visit
> along this route.
>
> I also intend to make another page with the report from the trip
> progress (with photos of course ;-)) that I will try to update during
> the trip.
>
> cheers,
>
> Tomek Zielinski
> PP-ASEL

[Bob Moore]

"NW_PILOT" > wrote

> I just returned form a flying adventure in South FL, Watch the AFB
> near key west.

I think that it would be "the Naval Air Station near Key West".

Bob Moore
Been based there

[Jonathan Sorger]

Check this out. A guy I know.
Might give you some tips:

http://www.circlemud.org/~jelson/aug-2004-trip/

[Dylan Smith]

I missed the start of the thread. However, I did a coast-to-coast trip
in a strictly VFR only Cessna 140.

Three observations:
It's no harder to plan than any other cross country
Be flexible (you have a wide choice of routes when doing such a long
trip - fly where the weather is best)
Make sure you have contingencies for maintenance. My trip involved
100 hours of flying. This means at least two maintenance days assuming
nothing broke.

On the maintenance angle, fortunately my trip was purely for the fun of
exploring - so I could plan to be back at base for scheduled
maintenance. I still had the generator fail halfway through though -
fortunately, I found a shop where we could rebuild the thing there and
then.

--
Dylan Smith, Castletown, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net
"Maintain thine airspeed, lest the ground come up and smite thee"

[Gizzy]

20-25 days seems like a long time.
I went from las vegas to louisville Ky in 9.5 hours I think it was in my
arrow. I went more direct then you are planning tho. I had only 2 fuel
stops, one in ABQ and one in Joplin Mo.

As for vegas stop, McCarren Vs. North las vegas, dont look at the
distance, its nothing, you can see both airports from either. If your
planning on flying north after fuel, then go into VGT (north las vegas) if
your goig south or east, then Hendeson (HND) is the better choice. also
winds come into play, north vegas typically seems to have less wind then
HND does but HND has a 6000 ft runway and way less traffic then an airport
in the area. How ever you do it, talk to LAS when you get close to the
class B.

Tomek Zielinski wrote:

> Hi,
>
> In a month time from now I plan to start my 20 to 25 days VFR flying
> trip in C-172 from San Diego to the East Coast (hopefully to Key West)
> and back.
>
> I published my initial planning on the internet, here is the link:
> http://www.astercity.net/~tomekz/us_coast_to_coast_2005_planning.htm
>
> I tried to plan the route in such a way that stops are near some
> tourist attractions (National Parks, museums, etc.), of course I
> cannot include all attractions on the way because then the trip would
> have to take much longer than 20-25 days. Naturally this is just an
> initial plan, at the end of the day the route and how far we will get
> will depend entirely on weather.
>
> I would very much appreciate your comments and suggestions about my
> route, airports I have chosen (or should choose) and places to visit
> along this route.
>
> I also intend to make another page with the report from the trip
> progress (with photos of course ;-)) that I will try to update during
> the trip.
>
> cheers,
>
> Tomek Zielinski
> PP-ASEL

[Gizzy]

ya going to the canyon from vegas HND is the better choice.
There are 3 or 4 tour operators flying out of VGT to the canyon, flying
out of HND you dont have to talk to anyone going to the canyon.

Blanche wrote:

> Consider HND Henderson rather than VGT in Las Vegas. They are
> about the same distance from LAS but I think HND is easier to
> get out and over to the Grand Canyon.