Glacier Tour

Kokanee Glacier

Wow!  I've seen Kokanee Glacier a number of times, but this is a a particularly striking view!  Jo-Anne went up with Bill recently on his glacier loop, and her artistic eye is evident in the images she took.  See all 11 in this side show:
http://photopeach.com/album/i65hwq

Jo-Anne has been in many small aircraft, but never above the valley that raised her.  She figures that Kazee is a great recreational vehicle - better than a motor home any day!

The path of this flight was recorded by SPOT as
http://www.findmespot.com/spotadventures/index.php/view_adventure?tripid=316413 
 

Hovering

upland valley

mountain tooth

larch

Rossiter Creek

in the mountains

These vistas look alarmingly close because they were shot from a helicopter.  Brother Will was on Forestry business in our area last week.  Two hardcore foresters who thought they'd seen it all were spellbound by the scenery.  Even the pilot was thrilled to be flying on such a great day!  Will reports that more than once they sucked in air as the helicopter barely swooped over a tight pass in the rocks.  It was odd to be in the middle of nowhere, then see people in highly remote spots - likely hunters or miners.

Thanks, Will, for sharing these wonderful images!

Smoke

Since our wettest-ever June, the pendulum has swing the other way.  September has been hot and dry.  So dry that the fire hazard cancelled sister Barbara's horse trail-riding events near Coombs this weekend.  So dry that layers of smoke from forest fires have settled among the peaks and valleys along our familiar air routes.
Here are some unusual views from our recent round trip to Calgary:

Looking back at New Denver Glacier from Kuskanax Valley

Rocky Mountain Trench at Sinclair Pass

peaks west of Canmore, Spray Lake

Although the beauty of the layers is arresting, I find it unnerving to fly in the murk.  I felt the same way about scuba diving in poor visibility.  At least with flying there is the potential destination.  Celebrating birthdays with family was worth some anxiety over staying on route.
http://www.findmespot.com/spotadventures/index.php/view_adventure?tripid=315650

The Incomparable Incomappleux

We love visitors!  Bill especially, as he gets lots of treats and doesn't have to rummage around for Auntie Dorothy's freezer-burned pork chop.  Sorry, Smith family joke.  
With luck, the weather is good and the visitor wants to fly. Such was the case recently when Bill and Vince headed north in a loop across Beaton Arm, up the Incomappleux Valley, into Roger's Pass, and home via Revelstoke.  It's not a route for the faint hearted, as there are no emergency landing spots until you break out over the TransCanada, and who wants to mix it up with that traffic?
Vince's photos speak for themselves:
http://www.kizoa.com/slideshow/d3282362k1803915o1/flying-the-incomappleux-peaks