From Greenland I now only had about 15 hours of flying left to complete my circumnavigation. The end was in sight. But it wasn’t going to be easy either!
12 September 2024: Kangerlussuaq, Greenland to Iqaluit, Canada
This was meant to be only a short four hour flight but I remained worried about the weather in Iqaluit as they had some low-level fog forecasted in the morning. I waited until late morning to take off and the time differences made this interesting -the longitudes are real close together that high on the globe! So I took off at 11.45am Greenland time, flew for four hours, and landed in Iqaluit at 12.30pm. The flight was fairly benign in the end. There was a layer of low cloud across the entirety of the Davis Strait so I never saw any water. Once over land it was patchy cloud but relatively clear when landing at Iqaluit – despite my worries. In fact, the FBO staff indicated it’s one of the best days they’ve had in a while (but that’s by Nunavut standards). As you are required to do, I had notified CANPASS via phone the previous evening of my arrival and immigration agents were waiting for me on the apron to clear me into Canada. I was also proud of the fact that per usual, I was within three minutes of my indicated arrival time.
I checked into the very comfortable Aqsarniit Hotel glad to be back in North America. Weather was poor the next morning and given that I had a seven hour flight to Montreal ahead, and that I didn’t want to land after dark, I decided to wait it out another day.
14 September 2024: Iqaluit to Montreal
For the final time had to refuel from full barrels of AvGas paid for by the barrel. So if you don’t use it all, you loose it. The fuel guy told me they use the leftovers for their motorcycles and snowmobiles with some donated as heating fuel for the locals.
There was a substantial band of icing forecast and it was fairly low down in altitude so I took off and stayed at 6000 feet. Soon after take-off I entered uncontrolled airspace and it was to remain this way for the next several hours. The controller gave me list of frequencies to call should I need them, but with no obligation to call in. I was on my own – and for a large proportion of the flight outside of any ATC coverage.
It’s quite incredible how big and unpopulated northern Quebec is. I flew for a good 500 miles without any sign of civilization. No roads, no settlements, no power lines. Nothing. When you compare that to the Arabian desert, I pick the Arabian desert any day to have an emergency landing in.
About two hours into the flight the band of weather ahead of me became fairly evident and I dropped down to 5000 ft just to make sure I stay below freezing levels. I was in rain and instrument conditions for about three quarters of an hour – nervously watching my wings for the spots where I know the ice will start to show. I got through fine though and fairly soon after it started warming up and kept doing so as I moved further south. Not before long and the first dirt road showed up. Still no sign of life though. That only really started appearing about an hour’s flight out from Montreal.
The Montreal area had some low popcorn clouds which I worked my way through before the descent and approach into Saint-Hubert, one of their main general aviation airports and where I landed just a few months earlier this year for a trip to Montreal. I was now back into familiar territory. In fact even the handler at Lux FBO remembered my Mooney. For my final night “on the road” I used my favorite Place D’Armes hotel right next to the Notre-Dame Basilica in old Montreal and had dinner at their rooftop bar.
15 September 2024: Montreal to Belmar, New Jersey
Once it became assured that I’d land back on the 15th, I’d given a few friends notice of my arrival time of 4pm local. So I had a leisurely morning in Montreal having coffee at my favorite shop before heading out to the airport and getting ready. I had to clear customs across the border in Burlington Vermont but having done it before was also familiar with the process. It was a quick 30 minute flight at 4000 ft to Burlington International where the friendly CBP officer met me on the apron and cleared me back into the US right there.
I filed my final flight plan and cheekily put “final leg of solo circumnavigation” in the remarks column in the hope of specifically the New York area controllers not routing me via Boston on DC again (that turned out not to help at all). The Burlington controller picked up on it right away though and asked about it on the ground frequency after which I explained briefly that the plane’s been around the world. They asked for my socials and I gave them the Instagram account – over the air. Certainly a first! Several of the airliners on the apron also jumped on with brief congratulations. Super cool experience.
So I was off on the last leg – at just over two hours not much of a leg when compared to what I’d flown as part of this trip.
There was admittedly a lot going in my head, much for which I haven’t found the words yet. On the one hand huge relief that this was about to finish, on the other hand pure dread of returning back to everyday normality.
