Horse Canyon &
Yakima River Overlook
(between Cle Elum and Ellensburg,
Washington)
By Chris Erikson
Background: The Horse Canyon site is located on a scenic pullout from Hwy 97, 3 miles S of Virden and the Hwy 97 & Hwy 970 junction. It overlooks Horse Canyon and is very scenic. Easy to reach because it's right on Hwy 97! It's very close to the Yakima River Overlook site (about a 10 minute drive), so I often visit both to determine which has the best wind exposure.
Slope Terrain at Horse Canyon: Grassy hill with no trees, Hwy 97 is right behind the pilot area, landing zone is the gravel parking/pullout area or you can ditch on the slope in the grass/sage if you have a nicer plane
Flying Horse Canyon: Good smooth lift, much smoother and with a much larger lift band than Yakima River Overlook. Nice view down into a big grassy valley with horses and ranches.
If the wind is the same at both sites, I choose depending on how many people I feel like seeing. Hwy 97 is not real crowded, usually seems to be about 10 cars per ten minutes, usually in clumps behind campers, so there isn't excessive road noise or distractions, but it's not as quiet as the Yakima River site which is on a little traveled dirt road.
Since the lift is large at Horse Canyon you don't need to do any flying anywhere near the road or yourself if you don't choose to. It's easy to fly out far enough over the valley so that there isn't any danger to drivers passing by, and there's plenty of room for fast ships and big air moves. I've safely flown my biggest birds here.
A Caution: Since you do stand near the hwy, it's probably not a good place for beginning pilots. The parking strip is quite wide, so it's a safe place for pilots, but unless you are competent enough to do assertive landings and keep the aircraft out over the valley, you'd probably be better served staying away from this site and not endangering drivers.
Getting There: Take I-90 E from Seattle to the last Cle Elum exit. Turn R (East) on Hwy 903 after exiting. You should now be on the N side of I-90 heading east. This will change into Hwy 970 as you continue N as if you are going to Swuak Pass. Continue about 10 miles, to Virden, watch for signs to Ellensburg, where Hwy 97 turns off and heads E. Make the right turn onto Hwy 97 at the intersection. In about 1 3/4 miles Bettas Road will exit to the right, stay on 97. Hwy 97 will begin to traverse and climb a big grassy slope, aiming for a small pass with a long pullout just before it on the right, at about 2.5 miles, next to a gravel pit. This is the site.
Driving Time: 1:30 from SR520 - I90 junction in Bellevue
Wind: W to NW wind -- very common here.
Weather: http://www.weather.com/weather/us/cities/WA_Ellensburg.html
Small Scale Highway Map of Cle Elum Area:
Large Scale Topographic Map of Horse Canyon Area:
Larger Scale Topo Map:
Yakima River Overlook Topographic Map:
