Dan writes:

In mountainous areas, I like to stay at least 1000 ft. above the
highest terrain along the course. More if the winds aloft are high.
Out here in the west, it always seems like I'm bumping up against the
oxygen altitude limits if I'm IFR though...

Why only when you are IFR?

I note that a lot of the areas in the western U.S. have sizable mountains.

If you have a choice between continuing straight on and climbing several
thousand feet to clear some mountains (with the potential need for
supplementary oxygen), and taking a detour to go them without a change in
altitude but at the cost of extra time and distance, which do you usually
prefer or consider more prudent?

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.