I have three favorite landing spots on this river - all are located on sections where the river is straight and the approach is over water with plenty of vertical clearance at each end. This favors what I call my "Stealth approach" which involves a route of flight just a few feet off the water at a slow approach speed, full flaps landing configuration, which allows one to cut the power and land right at the beginning of the bar with the benefit of being in ground effect during the final part of the approach.
On May 24th I flew up to the area of the Yukon below Beaver. The Yukon River was at full flood. The bar I had landed on just two weeks ago when the river was still iced up was completely covered with water. My intention was to fly up the Hodzana, as I do at this time each spring, to see which if any bars might be free of debris and possible for landing.
I was relieved to see that the Hodzana was not flooding and that from the junction with the Yukon, many short bars were visible. The Yukon was so high that it was actually back flowing up the Hodzana!
As I proceeded up the river, I was saddened to see that my lower landing spot had completely disappeared. Even at relatively low water, nothing was left. A little further up river, is my main landing spot - always roomy enough though constantly changing. It is located beneath an impressive cliff and has always been an exciting place to catch small wild Arctic Greyling and also a spot to see bear sign. Thankfully, for this summer, there were only a few large logs and none completely blocked the extent of the bar required for a successful landing. I landed here, the first time I have been able to do so in nearly 4 years!
A series of photos follows, showing the changing topology of the Hodzana River.
1. This first group of 5 pictures show a large and long bar on the lower part of the river that has now completely disappeared. (July 2007)
2. Most of this next group were taken on May 24th 2015, a little farther upstream. This bar was my first landing spot on this river. It has changed over the years but has never completely washed away. For the past 4 years there have been tree roots and logs obstructing the landing but this year there was a clear path and just a few logs to the side which made for a convenient seating area and location for a lunch break.
This area was the location of an intense fire in 2006 and the result is a colorful array of Fireweed in the second and third pictures. The reflecting water is a great backdrop for a beautiful and cherished aircraft and opportunities to see nature abound! The grizzly bear tracks are especially striking!
This is Alaskan wild country at its most beautiful!
