What is a helicopter tour over Washington like? — featuring Trevor Wert (Atomic Helicopters)

0:25 Have you ever flown in a helicopter? Well if you haven't, you should absolutely do it. And if you have, well you should still do it because it's awesome and at the end of this video I'm going to tell you how two of you, that's right, two of you can win a flight with my friends at Atomic.

0:40 Today I'm taking you on a heli adventure across Central Washington and through the Columbia River Gorge. My friends at Atomic Helicopters asked if I wanted to go for a flight with them. So I said no. No, I'm just kidding, of course I said yes. Why would you say no to something like that?

0:55 They were flying out to a resort right next door to the Gorge Amphitheater and flying over my house along the way. So they offered to pick me up here, which is perfect because the airport here is only 10 minutes from me, whereas I'd have to drive two and a half hours to go to them in Seattle.

1:09 So, that was pretty sweet. I've been in this helicopter a few times now and I've worked with Atomic for quite a few years, both at my last job and freelancing. And if you've never been in a helicopter before, it's incredible. It's by far my favorite way to fly. It's kind of wild the first time you get into one because

1:28 you'll be flying forward just like you would in a plane that we're all used to, but then it stops and hovers. And your brain's kind of like, huh, that's a weird feeling. And they can also go a lot of places that planes can't. Unless you're talking about Alaskan Bush Pilots, because those guys are built different.

1:45 And some of them have a screw loose, but they are absolutely amazing pilots. They are so good at what they do. One of my favorite things about helicopters is that when you're flying low and fast to the ground, it feels like you're in a fighter jet. Not that I've ever been in a fighter jet, but that's

2:02 what I imagine it feels like. Let's talk about the helicopter real quick. The Airbus H 130, also known as the Eurocopter EC 130, is one of the best top of the line helicopters out there. It's comfortable, it's quiet, it can fit a lot of people, and the performance is really impressive.

2:19 The H 130 has a powerful aerial 2D turbine engine, which gives it a ton of performance no matter what you're doing, whether it's It's high altitude or really hot when the air is really thin. Another thing you'll notice about the H 130 is it's Fenestron tail rotor. Most helicopters have a tail rotor that's

2:37 sitting back there just slicing away at the air. The Fenestron is enclosed which not only makes it quieter but also safer, for obvious reasons. It also has a really big open cabin that can seat up to 7 and everyone has great views thanks to the enormous windows. If you've seen Russ Robinson on Instagram, This is the

2:57 same type of helicopter that he has, and you should check him out if you haven't seen him because he goes on insane adventures in his helicopters with all his friends. They're up in Alaska right now, I'm pretty sure. If you've ever been to Washington, then you know how incredible the views are.

3:11 So imagine that just a little bit higher up, where you can see over the hills and those pesky trees. The views are tenfold at that point. I've never actually flown over central Washington or the Columbia River Gorge, except at 30, 000 feet on a plane. So this was pretty special for me.

3:27 Sarah and Matt from Atomic had asked for photos of the flight, so of course I was happy to oblige. Now shooting through windows on a normal house or building or anything like that, that's already pretty challenging. But helicopter windows are a whole nother level of challenging, because they have contours, they have

3:45 tint on the windows, they're Lexan, so it's just not optimal for image quality. So, a polarizer can help with that, but like I said, the contours make it challenging, and I ran into something that I'd never run into before, where it was confusing the auto focus system. So I was trying to focus on something outside of

4:03 the helicopter, but it was thinking that I was trying to focus on the window. So, it was, it was interesting. I'd never run into that before. Luckily, we were able to open the doors, which solved the problem pretty quick. But you're not always able to do that because of weather, like if it's really cold or really rainy

4:19 or anything like that. It just becomes uncomfortable. If you're shooting with your phone, I wouldn't worry about it too much, because you're gonna get awesome shots no matter what. But if you're taking a camera with you, I would highly suggest getting a polarizer or asking for the doors open.

4:34 Plus, the doors open is way more fun anyways. Even with all the challenges of the windows, you can still get really nice photos. Just the angle and the perspective that you get, they help deliver that and kind of make up for the distortion and the noise and lower quality and everything.

4:50 You're still going to get amazing photos, so I wouldn't worry about that. The helicopter delivered unbelievable views of the landscape, especially of the Columbia River Gorge and the jagged Cascade Mountains. But the most fun part was when we flew low and fast.

5:39 It's kind of like riding a roller coaster, but so much cooler. It felt like some of the other aircraft that I shoot doing low level training. It was a total adrenaline rush, and if you've watched any of my last videos, then you know that I thrive on adrenaline. And after all the fun was done, we had a relaxing

5:56 flight back home with a quick fuel stop in Ellensburg. This is where the incredible views of the Cascade Mountains and Mount Stewart kicked in. We even got a little peek of the top of Mount Rainier at one point. Seeing the snow covered peaks from this angle and flying

6:22 through all the valleys and flying around the wind farm was, it was really cool. Those wind turbines are huge. They're way bigger than they look. So big you could probably land the helicopter on top of them. Not that you would really want to do that because there's a lot of high speed spinning things, so yeah,

6:40 probably not the best idea. But they're big enough for that. I'm trying to say they're giant. They're huge. This flight was another reminder of how epic adventures can be when you get up into the air. It's not just about the sights, it's about the thrill, the rush, and the pure excitement of

6:56 flying low and fast. Through things like action sports, motorsports, and aviation, I've been able to push my creativity and capture truly wild moments like this. I love sharing these experiences and showing how amazing our world really is from different perspectives. And that's why Atomic Helicopters and I have

7:13 teamed up to give two of you the chance to win one of their Grand Tour flights. This flight is incredible and the views are unreal. First, you start out in Seattle, where you fly around the Space Needle, and then you head out to the Cascade Mountains, where you fly around the peaks,

7:27 the valleys, the lakes, the rivers, before making your way back to the Puget Sound. It's truly incredible, and the views are breathtaking, it'll be something you never forget. If you want to know more about it, I'll leave a link in the description below where you can enter. I hope this video inspires you to get out and explore

7:45 the world around you. It doesn't have to be in a helicopter, it could be by car, boat, foot, whatever. Skateboard, bike, whatever you want, whatever you have, just explore. This world is incredible and we should all enjoy it and take in its beauty and appreciate what we have. If you're in the Pacific Northwest and you're

8:03 looking for something to do, give Atomic Helicopters a call because it's honestly one of the best experiences you'll have. They offer a few different scenic tour options, and they also do custom private charters to pretty much anywhere you want to go, whether that's out to the gorge like we did, or out to the coast, or really anywhere.

8:20 And it's all in the top of the line Airbus H130. I believe in investing in experiences over physical things, because you can take that with you for the rest of your life, and it's something that you'll never forget. So if you want to add this type of experience to your list. I'll leave a link in the description below.

8:37 If you enjoyed this video, hit the like button, and don't forget to subscribe for more adventures like this one, or jets, or photography, or skiing, or whatever you came here for. And just so I know that you made it all the way to the end of the video, comment EPIC down below. And also in the comments, I want to hear about your

8:54 favorite adventures that you've ever been on, or ones that you want to go on. Alright, I'll catch you guys in the next one. Keep exploring!