Jerry wrote:
Hello,
My and my slow airplane are based at San Carlos, CA. Got up this
morning, looked out the window - the whole bay is blanketed in coastal
stratus. We get a lot of mornings like that.

Having gotten the rating last year, it sure would be nice to keep
proficient. The usual IFR practice run around here is to go out to the
valley and do the Stockton-Tracy-Livermore loop. Or to go out to
Watsonville/Monterey/Salinas. Either of these are a bit time consuming
because you actually have to fly somewhere.

I'm thinking of filing a pair of IFR flight plans - SQL to LVK and
LVK-SQL. Or maybe even SQL-OAK,OAK-SQL OR SQL-HWD-SQL. Sort of an
IFR version of pattern practice. Yielding the max practice per unit
time & fuel. Any Bay Area locals doing such? Or is the airspace just
way to busy to even contemplate it?

- Jerry Kaidor ( )


There's good reason those are the standard IFR practice routes for the
bay. They are low traffic, and they both have cruddy weather, even
when other parts of the bay are CAVU.

I am personally not fond of the LVK route, because its no radar, busy,
and typically more clearer than stockton. My instructor likes MRY,
I like stockton. Crappy weather, radar, and lots of open flat space.