What happened
A pilot filed a VFR flight plan for an eastbound flight to a remote airstrip via Whittier and Portage Pass. Approximately six minutes after takeoff, the aircraft impacted a vertical wall at the 700-foot level of the pass while in level flight.
Data regarding the aircraft's track indicated that it was skirting the left side of the pass. The impact occurred when the left wingtip struck a vertical wall on a heading approximately 60 degrees left of the pass centerline. At the time of the accident, weather conditions consisted of rain and fog, with visibility measured at 1 and 1/2 miles and an obscured ceiling of 200 feet. Witnesses located 700 feet below the impact site reported hearing the event but were unable to see the impact.