Reading the query about tailwheel endorsements made me think about my introduction thereto.

I wanted to fly to Alaska and I thought I could fly a "bush plane" up there and sell it and finance my trip... so... on the day of the projected arrival of my transport to the North...

I learned to fly a tail-dragger in a Luscombe 8E. One didn't need an endorsement to fly the plane back then. You just needed a death wish. Dang if that wasn't a an airplane that wanted to go backwards, at least on the ground. I had a couple of thousand hours in single seat fighters, had flown off carriers and been shot at some... and don't think I sweated much more in any A/C than in that squirrely little sucker.

I made about 15 take offs and landings in the Luscombe with a WWII P-51 pilot/instucter that afternoon. I went painfully left and right, using up all of the width of the runway and came close to death often, with tires screaming in agony until, finally, the poor guy, somewhat aghast, eyes like a deer in the headlights, gave up on my attempts, hangered his sweet little silver beauty and, shaking his head in disgust, went home. He wouldn't take my money. I guess he thought my family would need it to bury me.

Then, an hour or so later, after watching a delivery pilot make a feather soft wheel landing in my $6000.00, borrowed-money-purchased beauty and taking a deep breath, got in my "new" SuperCub that I had bought sight unseen from Trade-a-Plane, never having even cranked the thing before and flew the most useful of airborne wonders to Alaska. I landed on sandbars and n-----heads alike in the bush of our 49th, delightfully staying up there for 45 days... exploring various wonders and suprisingly not killing myself.

I only ground looped once... in Sheridan, WY on the way up there! I didn't damage the PA-18 much, just a scrape on the wingtip... N234T was the tail number, but wounded my pride a bit with my ground-borne acrobatics being in sight of a dozen ramp rats and CFI's who chided me mercilessly) and eventually became kind of proud of the little scrape on the left wing.

I logged over 250 hours on that first trip up and the various excursions in Alaska that late summer, maybe a little less on the following four adventures.

Every trip I was to take to was different. The first was a great taste. I met amazing folks that first adventure who mentored me, I caught a ton of salmon, killed three caribou and a 65" moose near Egegik, got chased by a brown bear on the beach of Bristol Bay, met a few beautiful women who could fly better than Bob Hoover and still found some time to drink some single malt and tell some lies over coffee and blueberry pie.

I built on my experience, buying four more airplanes in the next few years and flew them up there, always to fly and hunt my ass off until it came time sell, and thankfully made a buck to buy a ticket back, not incidently filling the larders of those who shared their knowledge with me.

The planes were another 8E (which had no starter, radio or navaids except a wet compass), a Citabria on floats, a Cessna 140 and a Teal Amphibian. All were a thrill a minute and my wanderlust just grew.

I was the King of the World.

I've got to do it once more before I die. Flying Lake Clark Pass out to a few hundred miles down the Alaska Pensula is a must... to know you've seen the best of God's creation, IMHO, is the cat's meow.

Every pilot should fly the the AlCan Highway and about Alaska once. Several thousands of miles at 100 feet and the most beautiful scenery in the world will give joy untold. I think about it every day.

God has been good to me. God bless taildraggers. They open up the world.

After reading your story Im leaning more toward buying the Pitts!

After reading your story, I have a piece of advice for you: Write a book!
And put me down for an autogaphed first edition!
Best wishes to you and all for a very Merry Christmas!

JudgeG, Next time you head down the peninsula stop in at our homestead and we can trade stories.
My first experiences with taildraggers was much the same as yours as I bought a 65HP tandem Taylorcraft and, with a 15 minute checkout flew from Penn to AZ and then up to Alaska. I have flown the trip many times since in Cubs, C-180's, Helio-Couriers and a few others but the only difference is that I never made enough $$ to leave

Great story it somehow brings back memories of my early days flying AK.

My first plane was a Cessna 150 trainer I bought to learn in in 1983. That year I studied the books and a C.F.I. friend did duel time with me in the 150. In November that year I got my license and I thought I had arrived. I was only to learn later the adventure had only just begun.

After getting my license my first order of business was o sell the 150 and buy a supercub. At that time of my life that was what life was all about.

Before I got my first cub a friend of mine called me on the phone. His partner had to leave camp and he wanted to know if I would fly his #2 supercub from Deadhorse to soldatna for him. Well sure I said buy me a ticket from Anchorage to deadhorse and I'll do it.

I arrived at deadhorse in some fog you could cut with a knife. I had a total of maybe 150 hours. we had about a half mile vis when I stepped off the jet and we walked over to the two cubs tied down on the ramp.

I commented that I was supprised we got in with the fog and my buddy said ya they push the minimums here it's like this all the time.

Ok my frind said we're loaded and have fuel and 4 extra cans in your plane. Lets taxi to the other side of the ramp and wait on the fog. By the way can you fly a supercub? Well sure my instructor let me fly his on skis for 4 hours I've got it down.

We taxied off the ramp but just before we climbed in the two cubs he said your radio isn't working well you can hear me but not transmit when we depart so we'll go out as a flight of two.

I could barely see anything as we went to cross the runway going to the other side. I listened as my friend talked to the flight service station who actully had a tower. My friend said on the radio I can see the shack we'll be departing, 98Z requesting a special, flight of two. We were cleared advised to maintain visual seperation and I watched my friends supercubs tail stand up in the air as he went full throtle.

A lot went through my mind in just a couple of seconds. The main thought I had was I'm not flying in this but my friend was just breacking ground and I new that the only way I was going to make this work was to go, NOW and not loose sight of him till we break free of the fog.

Full throttle pulled the flaps and like all cubs I was in the air before I could screw up. I focused on my friend as we turned south to follow the haul road out. My friend came on the radio and said we're going to hug the haul road till we get out of the fog you stay on the right side of the road and I'll stay on the left so we don't run into each other. By the way theres nothing to run into out here like power lines towers or anything else you just have to watch out for trucks coming our way. We were only a few feet off the deck and a couple of times we did have to skirt around an on coming truck.

We were in slow flight due to the fact that we couldent see shit. I had one notch of flaps pulled and running about 2000 rpm. I had to fly with carb heat on because my engine would ice up after about two minits without the heat.

At one point I crept up on a pickup truck flying barly faster than they were driving. As I pulled up beside the passanger gazed to his right and then did a quick double take seeing who was in the other lane. I gave him a quick wave and slowly passed him by.

We broke out of the fog to a beautiful day just north of Galbrath lake. on the radio my frind said we'll land here and throw those cans of fuel in. He landed first and I lined up with the runway I was feeling great being out of the fog and all was well. My mains hit the ground and I rolled all of maybe 20 feet bfore things started to not seem right. The cub veered to the left and I compensated gently to get back to the right. The plane flung itself hard to the right and I was rolling off the runway. The only thing I couuld think of was to jam the left brake and rudder. I did and the plane started skidding in the direction it was going but slowly turning were I wanted it to go. The right wing tip was only inches from the ground but it never hit. I came to a stop pointing the opposit direction from were I landed. I taxied over to my friends plane expecting he had seen all that. I shut down the engine opened the door and said I think we need to do some duel time before we go on.
Why he asked and I said ah did'nt you see that. See what he said oh never mind I replied.

Just then a state of Alaska maintanance truck pulled up. The worker rolled down his window and exclaimed good save I thought you were going to wreak for sure. My friend at that realed his head up at the wing tips. the state guy drove away and I said so lets unload and get this tail dragger thing down. My friend just said no I think you have it now lets go on to cold foot and get a hamburger.

That day did indeed teach me to fly a tail dragger and there were a few more exciting moments before the day ended. I had just started feeling comfortible landing that plane when I ended up Making my last landing at Talkeetna in the dark. My plane was faster so I punched it at about windy pass to get there with hopefully some light left. No did'nt make and had to find the runway in the dark and then not wreak the plane. My friend landed about 10 min after me and his radio worked so he was able to key up the lights.

All in all a great memory and the beggining of my bush flying carrer.

Yes Judge Lake clark pass is a must do for any pilot. At this point I think I could do it wih a blind fold.

Thanks for your story and bringing back the times in my past when it was all such an adventure and scary. Oh ya it still is. I'm glad you got to share in it as well. next time look me up and we'll go do a few short field landings.

All of us who have survived in this business have stories like that and we now know first hand the truth in the axium about old pilots and bold pilots.
What still amazes me is that so many of us survived the early learning-what-not-to-do phase

Judge, I have to agree with Trapper. Your hunting stories and flying stories are first rate. Write us a book!

Well I am still learning what not to do. And my Certificate just had its 34th birthday. In hind sight we can sit and laugh about stuff like that, you managed not to get hurt or worst. As for ground loop's there are those that have and those that are going to. Nice read for a boring evening.

Great stories. Write the book, Judge.

I flew taildraggers from 1963 until 1987. The Super Cub was one of my favorites. I loved the Helio Courier. You could land it in one plane length with no headwind.

I flew Beech 18's from '63 to '87, and DC-3's from 1976 until '87. That's when Southern Air hired me and I went to bigger birds.

My all time favorite aircraft is the Beech 18. You gotta have smart feet to fly tail draggers.

Look back into aviation history. The advent of the nosewheel changed the way small aircraft were marketed, just like the yoke replacing the stick.

I will always prefer the stick and rudder tailwheel aircraft over all the others. Challenging to fly, you can go places in them where nosewheel equipped aircraft will not survive.

And, they all said-"we made it".