I'm getting this urge to get in my plane and fly to Florida. I'm in San Diego, CA. I want to spend several days flying up and down the state and do some SCUBA diving in the Keys (not on flying days, of course). I have gone back and forth on flying commercial and renting there, or doing this trip in my Cherokee 180. Something keeps telling me that it would be awesome between Galveston Bay TX and Orlando and that I shouldn't miss that part, but flying through AZ and NM along the Mexican border sounds really boring to me.
My questions to those who can answer: Is this worth it? and, what's the best time of year to attempt it? I'm VFR with a 3-week vacation window!!
I flew from El Cajon to Mississippi last summer in a Warrior. Honestly, I wouldn't do it again in a plane that slow unless I absolutely had to. The whole trip is boring, but the most boring part is Texas.
We took the Southern Route, along the Mexican border and just north of El Paso. Thunderstorms played havoc with the trip, and we spent a lot of time looking at weather, or flying around weather. The first day, we only got as far as Las Cruces, NM due to weather in the mountains.
Now, as to your question: Is it worth it? Yes - it's great experience. But you'll probably not want to do it again once ya get done. As to the best time, I'd say let the scuba schedule dictate the rest - go when the diving is best. Apart from summer afternoon thunderstorms, which are usually pop-up and isolated in nature, I don't see why you'd have any major weather constraints along with a particular time of year.
I would wait until you are IFR rated. That being said, I did several Orlando to Green Bay trips while only VFR, but the last one scared my wife to the point that she told me no more trips till I was IFR rated. (Used PIC to get my IR after that.)
Anytime after noon during the March to October months, you will find yourself at 1500' in a very rough ride in Florida. Smooth months are November to February, but you could be grounded for a couple of days as that is when the cold fronts actually make it to Florida. With an IR rating, you can climb above the smaller stuff and get a smooth ride by going between the tops.
You might want to schedule this for a stop at Sun-n-Fun.
Tony Thigpen
Commercial-SEL + IFR
KSFB - Sanford FL
PA32R-300
We bought the warrior in San Francisco and flew it home to (at the time) New Orleans. I find west texas interesting from the air actually. The topography is interesting in several parts. Flown from Houston to Eloy, Az several times and don't find it boring.
The flight should be a real adventure - I live in the south and regularly travel to Florida and the Keys. Key Largo, Islamorada are fun places - excellent fishing and diving. There are alot of great places to visit in Florida (too many to mention). Don't worry about having the IFR rating - with 3 weeks you can wait out any weather. I've been IFR for years and the vast majority of the time, you can fly VFR anywhere...you should have no problems. As far as Florida, the ideal time is October thru April. The thunderstorm/cell activity is active especially in the afternoon during the summer months, but after October, the weather is really nice.
If you have time, stop at Cedar Key for lunch...it's old Florida like in the 60's before the mega condos starting going up everywhere!
I concur. I've flown all over the country VFR without incident, and have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. The key is flexibility regarding your timeline. A few years ago, I bought a PA28180C in the LA area, and flew it back to Florida VFR in about 21 hours, if I recall correctly. It was one of the highlights of my flying experiences. Go for it.
We flew a Warrior VFR from southwest Michigan to Fort Myers three years ago and it was a terrific, memorable experience. Jim's right, the key is flexibility. We did not do the flight to make good time, we did it for the adventure. Because it was June, we simply did not plan to fly during the afternoon at all. If the weather got lousy (and it did), rather than push it, we simply landed, tied down, and enjoyed the local hospitality. We made lots of stops along the way, saw a lot of interesting and unexpected things tucked away at the airports between here and there, and met a lot of terrific people. If you have the time, a trip like that can be a great experience. If you're looking for an efficient alternative to the airlines, however, think again.
I live in Vancouver, WA. I flew down the Pacific Coast - INCREDIBLE!
Turned left at San Diego and stopped at Mobile, AL then went North to Missoula, MT and then back home.
Went to Cabo, MX. The trip down the Sea of Cortez is unreal.
All done in my Cherokee 140 - totally VFR.
If your gonna go IFR - why go? If the idea is just to get from one place to another that is a different story. But I want to see what I am flying over.
The views are unreal. The only place I will not fly is in Nevada except in the very early morning. Horrible ride 1 year ago. Depending on how hot it gets and turbulence.
Skirting the Mexican border can be challenging in a couple of places below Arizona. Several Restricted areas and they are close together. Going across Texas was fine with me. Stopped at College Station for fuel – very nice place.
I had concerns about flying across America and my friend and mechanic said – “it’s just a change of scenery”. He was right. It gives you tremendous amounts of experience that I wouldn’t trade for the world.
I was not on any schedule.
Here is why I suggested an IFR rating.
Not because he should fly IFR, but because of his tight schedule. He said "vacation time". To me, that implied that he will have to schedule it in advance. He could easily be delayed on departure and end up using more than a week of his vacation before he even get's to Florida. Then, he has the same problem on the return. He could have to wait out two separate frontal systems on the way back. He could do all this and end up with only a few days in Florida.
At the same time, he could go to his boss and schedule his summer vacation and have the best three weeks of weather. But that would take a lot of luck.
An IFR ticket gives you the ability to not have to worry. It might even be better to schedule (someone like) PIC for his first week of vacation, then fly to Florida for the other two weeks. Less worry about the return and he could really enjoy Florida knowing his schedule is not weather dependent.
Tony Thigpen
Commercial-SEL + IFR
KSFB - Sanford FL
PA32R-300
I don't quite agree Tony, since if he really runs out of time he can always catch an airline flight back and when the weather clears, go back and continue the flight back home, but from my personal experience if he plans with an extra 3 or 4 days he should be able to avoid the worst of the weather though it might involve altering the route at times. Sounds like a trip he can tell his grandkids about some day. The little Grumman I have shows a flight from Winnipeg Canada through the USA and all the way to Tobago, then back via a different route, the whole trip in about 3 weeks. Out of curiosity I phoned the former owner to ask about it but was only able to speak to his widow, he had died quite a few years ago of cancer, so it is a good thing he did it while he could. I think there is a message there for all of us.
