Plane
Tom Ogg
Steve and Lesley Kamm, SeaWind Aviation
One of the most interesting sights in Alaska
is the Misty Fjords National Monument. With over 2.2 million acres of
wilderness, it is unique because fjords traverse the entire area. With
sheer granite cliffs falling thousands of feet into deep fjords, the
scenery is simply spectacular. Add the fact that the entire monument
resides in a coastal rain forest and Misty Fjords National Monument is one
of the most awe inspiring sights in Alaska.
Flying in Misty Fjord National Monument
The best way to experience the monument is via
float plane from Ketchikan. Misty Fjords is south and east of Ketchikan
and the flight to and from Misty Fjords takes one far from civilization.
The main trick to having a wonderful experience is dependent upon the
weather and the pilot. If the weather is difficult, flying may be
uncomfortable and visibility disappointing. A good pilot will know where
the best flying conditions are for the weather at hand, so you want to be
sure that your pilot has flown in the area for a good number of years.
Second, the pilot can make or break the experience for you if they talk
too much, or too little. A good pilot will be completely up-front with
you, asking for your desires. Most have scripted narration that consists
of information about the monument and its elements.
Flying into Misty Fjords
On my last visit to Ketchikan, we arrived on a
stellar day. The sun was shinning and there was virtually no wind. If you
are in Ketchikan under similar circumstances, this would be your signal to
immediately book a float place trip to the Misty Fjords National Monument.
This is exactly what we did. While I had gone with other operators before,
on this day we were booked with a company called SeaWind Aviation. Since
we had booked it the morning we arrived in Ketchikan, the only flight that
we could get was at 2 pm. As our last tender back to the ship was at 3:30
pm, it was a tough decision to risk missing the tender. On the assurance
of SeaWind Aviation that they would get us to our ship, no matter what, we
decided to go for it.
The SeaWind Aviation Transfer Van
We were met at 1:30 pm in front of the
Ketchikan Visitors Center by Lesley Kamm, the co-owner of SeaWind Aviation. Lesley had their new baby with her and after getting into the van, she
related her story of meeting Steve after moving from Southern California
to Ketchikan.
Lesley and one of the Next Generation of Ketchikan Bush
PilotsShe
obviously loved her new life and did a wonderful job making everyone feel
comfortable. We arrived at the SeaWind Aviation dock, checked in and paid
for our upcoming adventure. I really liked the idea that this was a family
operation and was looking forward to meeting Steve.
Steve by His Airplane
Steve arrived with a load of passengers that
he had just returned with and he and Lesley were able to turn the aircraft
around to be ready for our tour. We left promptly at 2 p.m. Steve turned
out to be a third generation Ketchikanian and his father also flew float
planes his entire life in the area. To say that Steve was knowledgeable of
south east Alaska would be a huge understatement. The thing I liked best
about Steve's approach was that he acted more like he was taking close
friends on an adventure rather than adopting a persona of a tour guide or escort. I
instantly liked him and found his approach very enjoyable. Right
off the bat he asked if we wanted the typical tourist narration and everyone
in our plane declined. The headsets had microphones that were voice
activated, so that everyone in the aircraft could talk with one another.
Ketchikan From the Air
We taxied out into the inlet and began our
ascent. After clearing the water, Steve gently climbed from Ketchikan
awarding us with awesome views of the entire Ketchikan area. We made our
way down the inlet to another body of water where we turned left and
headed inland towards the Misty Fjords National Monument. The day was
simply beautiful. Steve mentioned it was one of the nicest that he had
remembered in recent times. The views were awesome! After 10 minutes or so
we started entering into the fjords themselves.
The Sheer Granite Cliffs of Misty Fjords
We climbed over ridges, flew along granite
cliffs that plummeted thousands of feet below us. Steve had seen some
bears on his last trip so he returned to the same area to see if he could
spot them again. We saw many mountain goats lying on the ridges, but did not find
the bears. Flying in and around the fjords became a surreal experience for
me. I loved the pure ruggedness of the terrain, yet also loved the luxury
of simply flying where ever we wanted.
Misty Fjords Lake
After a period of flightseeing, Steve spotted
a lake and began to drop in elevation setting up for a landing. The lake
was absolutely dead calm and as the plane settled into the lakes smooth
surface, one couldn't even tell that we had landed.
Landing on a Lake in Misty Fjords
We taxied to a huge granite boulder that
resided in the center of the lake on its eastern side and Steve paddled
the aircraft to the rock for everyone to enjoy the views and the peaceful
surroundings. The view was beautiful. It reminded me that on my next trip
to Ketchikan, I want to spend the day fishing on one of these lakes all by
myself.
Misty Fjords Lake View
After a short rest on the rock and enjoying
the remoteness of the area, we boarded the aircraft and took off once
again. We visited more fjords before starting our return back to
Ketchikan. All too
soon we were dropping elevation getting ready to arrive in Ketchikan. We
looked at our watches and it was already 3:30 pm and we started to worry
about the last tender. Lesley had the van waiting for us, we piled in, and
she got to the tender wharf as quickly as she could. When we arrived she
jumped out of the car, ran to the pier above the tender and yelled that
there were still people coming. We made our way to the tender and were the
last people to board the last tender of the day. Once we boarded, they
closed the tender and left for the ship. Talk about cutting it close!
Here is the bottom line on the Misty Fjords
National Monument Float Plane trips. It is a must do if you want to
experience some of southeast Alaska's spectacular wilderness. There are numerous
operators offering a variety of tours into the monument. If you make
advanced reservations you run the risk that there might be bad weather,
but if you don't, you run the risk that there might not be space. Plan on
spending about $200.00 per person for a tour with a landing included. The
experience is well worth the additional cost.
Would I recommend SeaWind Aviation? You bet.
By the way, just so you know, I paid full tilt for the tour and don't
receive any advertising or other revenues from them. When Lesley said "it
doesn't seem like we should be charging you" I told her, how can I give an
honest opinion, if I got it for free? Steve and Lesley are wonderful
people that deserve your business and Steve is one of the most personable
and knowledgeable pilots I have run across. I will use them again in the
future.
Seawind Aviation's New Aircraft.
July 19th, 2005 Update:
I was recently in Ketchikan on Celebrity Cruise Line's Mercury and
stopped by to see the folks at Seawind Aviation. I was pleasantly
surprised that they had just acquired a new float plane capable of
carrying more people at one time (they were even loading a disabled
person). They are such great people that I am very happy for their
success.Here is their
contact information;
SeaWind Aviation
1249 Tongass Avenue
Ketchikan, Alaska 99901
1-877-225-1203
info@seawindaviation.com
http://www.SeaWindAviation.com
