Feature Article: Circumnavigation of VI

MISSION:

The Circumnavigation of Vancouver Island

By John Bullock (with Camille Angus)

Dual training and practice flights help us acquire and maintain skills. While vital, few of these will stand out as memorable flights. My first night solo is one flight that lives on in my mind; my PPL flight test is another. But there is nothing like going from A to B on a specific, personal mission to reach next-level memorable. For my partner Camille and I, that mission flight was last May.

WHY CIRCUMNAVIGATION?

Our reasons included:

• My partner has lived in, or has childhood connections to, many parts of the island, but has not been to them for decades

• as a kid I was captivated by my dad's large map of the island — the place names sounded exotic, and I have always wanted to see as many as I could

• driving the entire island isn't possible and touring it by boat is out of our reach

• it was a travel adventure that was still possible during pandemic restrictions

• planning the 1000km mission and executing it would teach me new skills

• time building toward my commercial license

Finally, we thought a whale sighting would be fantastic.

THE PLAN

I decided on a clockwise orbit. My partner would be photographing the shoreline and mountains, so it made sense for her to be on the land side. I am not instrument rated, so going clockwise from Victoria also meant we could transit the most remote stretches before the weather could degrade to instrument conditions.

The next decision was the altitude. I chose 2500' on the way up and 3500' after rounding Cape Scott. This would maximize our views of the shoreline, and hopefully any whales, while still leaving some safety margin. Engine failures are not ideal at any altitude, and because we would be flying over water pretty much the entire route we wore lifejackets for the duration of the flight.

I based refueling stops on the maxim: "you only have too much fuel when you are on fire". This conveniently ignores density altitude and weight limits, but it held for us since: we would be relatively low; we had little cargo; and temperatures were still mild in May. Given the long distance between FBOs, I chose to refuel at both Tofino (CYAZ) and at Port Hardy (CYZT).

THE FLIGHT

I spent the first two-thirds of the flight looking for emergency landing sites while my partner took pictures. It wasn't until after Cape Scott, with over 300 nm behind us and lots of fuel to make Port Hardy, that I eased up in my search for beaches. It wasn't as intense as it sounds; I'm convinced I enjoyed the flight even more than my partner. Self-serve fuel at Tofino (CYAZ) was a non-issue. I had refueled there before so knew what to expect. As usual, I took multiple credit cards in case one or more failed. Fuel at Port Hardy (CYZT) was full-service courtesy of the friendly, professional staff at the only local FBO.

We made an extra stop at Alert Bay (CYAL). Thinking that I might not get that far north for a while, I did a stop and go not only for the practice but to also add another field to my "I landed there" list.

CAPTAIN'S LOG: SUPPLEMENTAL

We had considered including the tiny Scott and Triangle islands near the top of the route. A climb would have been required to get to them and stay within gliding distance of shore. But we'd already be arriving at Port Hardy quite late and there's a substantial callout charge for after-hours fuel service. In the end, we decided to skip them, but if you're planning a circumnavigation consider adding these end-of-the-line islands.

Both Tofino and Port Hardy charge landing fees. These aren't significant — about $15 and $25 respectively — but know that the charges will trickle back to you, though they can take up to two months! A belated reminder of your wonderful trip?

CONCLUSION

We will never forget this trip. My partner got a chance to see places from childhood and I finally saw the places with exotic names I was beginning to think I would never see. It was a perfect flight and the views were stunning.

Our success has encouraged us to plan more memorable flights. In the end, there was only one downside: we didn't see a single whale. Next time!