Hello hooligans! Alaska has become something of a second home to the Bush League Hooligans. In June, it will, once again, play host to our Backcountry Fly-In. Even though we are becoming very familiar with many amazing locations in the Land of the Midnight Sun, this expansive state continues to provide new adventures and hidden discoveries. We hope you can join for the fun on Monday, June 6 starting around 8:00PM EDT (01:00z, June 7).
Bush League Basics:
- Everyone is welcomed! Whether you’re an expert or beginner with flight simulators, radio communications, or navigation, etc., you’re invited! We’re a friendly bunch and enjoy learning from each other.
- Tonight’s event is for your favorite float plane. There are paved and gravel strips in the area, so you can use an amphib version, or a pure float plane. The choice is yours.
- We encourage you to join the VATSIM network and use the CTAF frequency of 122.8 to announce positions. We will not be in communication with ATC unless you plan to extend your flight into a controlled airspace.
- We’ll also use the Downwindsim Discord voice channel during the flight for non-ATC related chit-chat.
- As always, the main goal of these flights is to have fun and practice good airmanship. The event is intended to be VFR, so you are free to configure your weather and time of day as you see fit.
Flight Information:
This month, we will be exploring the area from a float plane and/or helicopter perspective, visiting a few lakes between Seward (PAWD) and Kenai Municipal (PAEN) in the central portion of the Kenai Peninsula. For your consideration, you can begin at either Kenai and travel easterly, or start at Seward and travel westerly. In true Bush Hooligan spirit, there is no penalty if you wander a bit (you might want to), or visit the cabins out of order. Just be mindful of your fuel, the weather, and other traffic in the area. Fuel is available at Seward, Kenai Muni, 9Z9 Lawing and JLA Quartz Creek.
Destinations include (but are not limited to) Bear Creek, Indian Creek, Caribou Island, Upper Russian Lake, Trout Lake, Juneau Lake (2 locations here), Swan Lake (2 locations here), Summit Lake, and Skilak Lake. Fortunately Uncle Melvin has made a few notes on his personal sectional map found here. If you need more detail, use Acme Mapper.
Scenery Installation:
Seward (PAWD): X-Plane Freeware, X-Plane Payware, MSFS Freeware, MSFS Payware
Kenai Muni (PAEN): X-Plane Freeware, X-Plane Payware, MSFS Freeware, MSFS Payware
Lake and Cabin Destinations (excluding Seward and Kenai Muni) by Melvin Leroy and DWS for XP11
Ortho4XP Recommendations: In total, X-Plane users will need orthotiles for +60-152, +60-151, +60-150. ARC Imagery and NED 1″ DEM was used during development. There are OSM data files you need to copy to your Ortho4XP/OSM_data tile specific folder. These help better define the shorelines of the lakes we will be visiting. Remember to recook your tiles (+60-150, +60-151) after copying these files into the appropriate folders. If you don’t know what to do with these, this tutorial might help.
Global Forests for Alaska (A really good (and free) forest addon from GeoReality)