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12-17-09 idaho mt top
- Thread starter mattfidaho
- Start date
NorthernRedneck
Well-known member
Cool! How much snow you guys got now? We've got some here but still not enough to get the snowcat out on the trails. Mostly muskeg swamp around here with lots of rocks/stumps sticking out so we gotta wait till we get at least 2.5-3 ft of the white stuff before we can go anywhere. No sense destroying the equipment.
mattfidaho
New member
It has been very warm in the valley 34 25 today, most of it has melted. but about 2 feet in the mountains... but drifting is what kills the tower access. sno cat only from here on out.
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Snowtrac Nome
member formerly known as dds
those are some nasty conditions when the clouds come in creating flat light same kind of stuff i wrecked my snow trac in
mattfidaho
New member
yeah I hate when the snow has no definition 
it was 0 viz most of the trip. nice wet fog, the kind that ices up dishes just slow going. there has been times in blizzard white outs when I havent been about to see the blade in front of the cat. makes for a long trip.
it was 0 viz most of the trip. nice wet fog, the kind that ices up dishes just slow going. there has been times in blizzard white outs when I havent been about to see the blade in front of the cat. makes for a long trip.
mattfidaho
New member
depending on the tower there is stakes every 20 feet or so, usualy in just the wind blown bad areas. but some times it seams to take for ever to see the next one.... I carry most of my winter SAR gear (my pack), along with a 72 hour 2 man kit that stays in the cat, and a SPOT gps transmitter.
mattfidaho
New member
the longerst I have had to be stranded was a few hours when the old tucker broke a track, with work the guys came up with sleds and got us out. we had to go back the next few days with parts and tools to get her fixed.
as far as getting stranded in 0 viz luckaly the area isnt very big usualy just after you leave the tree line to where the towers are at. and we know the area very well ( not over confidence) but we make sure everyone knows where we are and we keep in communication with the guys at the office.
plus even if you cant see the trail markers you can always just look for the next broke down krusty,(or other 2 track) this is a good habit as they rarely get far off the trail
I have heard of people running Christmas lights on them this year so that should make my job even easier 
as long as there is no mechanical problems we can pick our way using all the other equipment gps and out maps we can slowly pick our way to the towers. most of the issues I have had have been below the tree line when the snow is deep and the side hills are steep. just takes time some times.
there was times on sleds we would get off and walk 5 feet or so to check the trail then ride 5 feet then walk etc.
as far as getting stranded in 0 viz luckaly the area isnt very big usualy just after you leave the tree line to where the towers are at. and we know the area very well ( not over confidence) but we make sure everyone knows where we are and we keep in communication with the guys at the office.
plus even if you cant see the trail markers you can always just look for the next broke down krusty,(or other 2 track) this is a good habit as they rarely get far off the trail
I have heard of people running Christmas lights on them this year so that should make my job even easier as long as there is no mechanical problems we can pick our way using all the other equipment gps and out maps we can slowly pick our way to the towers. most of the issues I have had have been below the tree line when the snow is deep and the side hills are steep. just takes time some times.
there was times on sleds we would get off and walk 5 feet or so to check the trail then ride 5 feet then walk etc.
mattfidaho
New member
43.71826,-111.35304
this is by far one of the easiest of our mountain sites to get to, and lots of fun. there are a couple others that are not fun with about 70% or the trip being side hills.
one thing I forgot to mention was I have all my winter trails marked on the gps, we care 2 some times 3, so we can tell farely close where we need to go in 0 viz. I guess one of the benifits of going to the same places all the time. now if I am on a search and rescue call out then that is an different game all together. I would not try and navigate in 0 viz with out all the other cats and support people.
this is by far one of the easiest of our mountain sites to get to, and lots of fun. there are a couple others that are not fun with about 70% or the trip being side hills.
one thing I forgot to mention was I have all my winter trails marked on the gps, we care 2 some times 3, so we can tell farely close where we need to go in 0 viz. I guess one of the benifits of going to the same places all the time. now if I am on a search and rescue call out then that is an different game all together. I would not try and navigate in 0 viz with out all the other cats and support people.
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utahwilson
New member
If I bring beer can I get a ride sometime? 
mattfidaho
New member
If I bring beer can I get a ride sometime?
well beer could make the trail more interesting
"man I cant see anything" "Oh we forgot to take the windshield cover off" LOL yeah I am always will to bring new victims, errr... I mean new friends out. we will just save the beer for after
I'm a commercial airline pilot and as such have a fair amount of experience with crappy visibility, though not as bad as what you've encountered.
One type of airplane I've flown (737-800) has a heads-up display that is awesome in terms of the guidance and information display. It allows one to hand fly an approach very precisely. In the simulator I've handflown an approach to touchdown (on the runway centerline) in zero visibility. That's a tremendous confidence builder as far as how good the system is, though you would never do that in the real airplane.
What's interesting is with an aircraft and runway that are category 3 certified, you can take off or land in really crappy visibility. The most difficult part is getting from the gate to the runway or vice versa.
I don't envy you the white-out conditions you operate in!
One type of airplane I've flown (737-800) has a heads-up display that is awesome in terms of the guidance and information display. It allows one to hand fly an approach very precisely. In the simulator I've handflown an approach to touchdown (on the runway centerline) in zero visibility. That's a tremendous confidence builder as far as how good the system is, though you would never do that in the real airplane.
What's interesting is with an aircraft and runway that are category 3 certified, you can take off or land in really crappy visibility. The most difficult part is getting from the gate to the runway or vice versa.
I don't envy you the white-out conditions you operate in!
Snowtrac Nome
member formerly known as dds
thats a great idea to pimp my snow cat a HUD to use with my gps
Don,
It would be cool allright but I believe the option from Boeing was in the $200K range. IIRC just the combining glass (what the images are projected on) is something like $16K. Here's a link: http://www.rockwellcollins.com/page5680.html