Have you ever had the experience of a dream becoming realized? Flying over the Grand Canyon became number one on my aviation bucket list once I got my pilot’s license. But living in South Florida, it didn’t seem likely that it would ever become true. However, the opportunity came when I was hired to fly a Cessna Cardinal from California to Florida! In researching the flight, there really wasn’t a lot of info out there. I did find an old article from 1999 written in SW Aviator Magazine and there was nothing else. The article did a great job of explaining how tourism has changed the Grand Canyon flying and the corridors that had been set up. I still wasn’t super confident but figured to give it a try.
One professional and personal suggestion: I highly recommend purchasing the Grand Canyon sectional from one of your favorite online pilot shops since most pilot shops don’t carry them. It will make your flight planning much easier plus it is a great souvenir.
After picking up the plane, the first leg was uneventful, from the departure point in California to Boulder City, Nevada. Boulder City (BVU) is a great little city about 15 miles south east of Vegas. From there we went to Lake Meade to check out the Hoover Dam. Simply follow the power lines to the north east and you can’t miss it! Be sure to monitor 120.65 and give the best position reports possible, since there are many helicopters coming to and from the canyon. We circled a few times at around 3,000 feet AGL and were able to get some great shots!
After the dam, we went north east to Grand Canyon West (1G4). The sights were amazing and we could only imagine what the full canyon would look like. Our plan was to go around the north of the canyon and drop in one of the corridors to the east. As we got to 1G4, which was just a landing strip, we realized the Cardinal wouldn’t make it up to even 11,500 MSL, since it was the end of June with a high-density altitude. So, I got the idea to call approach control from a frequency found in the terminal charts of 1G4 and ask for flight following at 9,500 feet to Grand Canyon National Park Airport (GCN). It worked! We were granted permission to fly directly over the Grand Canyon toward the south east boundary where GCN was located. I also heard a lot of pilots using flight following while flying in corridors which is a great idea since if you lose an engine someone will have a location on you.
The flight was breath taking. If I had a different plane or the conditions were a bit more favorable, I would highly recommend taking the corridors. Dragon Bravo looked absolutely amazing with the different colors of rocks and all the different rock formations. Upon reaching GCN we requested a different destination and continued our journey back to Florida. A personal note. If in need of fuel I wouldn’t recommend stopping at GCN since it is busy and the fuel prices are higher. Valle Airport (40G) is about 20 miles south, has cheaper fuel, and is much less hectic.
Even though the tourism industry has taken over the canyon and the days of flying low in the canyon are gone, it is still an amazing experience! I am very fortunate to have been able to add this experience to my aviation bucket list. Seeing the Grand Canyon from above gives miles and miles of breath-taking views that cannot be seen while riding inside the canyon. I hope that you can also experience these amazing geographical wonders as well. Be sure to always take density altitude, fuel requirements and aircraft avoidance into account to ensure a safe flight!
I’m so glad I took the time to detour just a bit on my journey back to Florida. It might be the route less traveled, but it made all the difference to me!
