What happened
The pilot departed without obtaining a formal weather briefing. While operating under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR), the pilot changed the flight's destination. The aircraft proceeded toward a nearby VOR and flew nearly over the airport. After passing the airport, the pilot notified air traffic control of his intention to orbit the area to search for a break in the cloud layer.
Upon observing a hole in the clouds, the pilot informed the controller and canceled his IFR clearance. During the subsequent descent over mountainous terrain, the aircraft struck trees on the upslope side of a mountain at approximately 3,200 feet mean sea level. Following this initial impact, the airplane continued to descend in a left-wing-low attitude, ultimately colliding with the downslope side of the mountain.
At the destination airport, which has an elevation of 1,700 feet, a pilot witness reported that approximately 41 minutes before the accident, the weather consisted of a broken ceiling of about 2,000 feet above ground level.
The investigation
An examination of the engine and the aircraft revealed no evidence of preimpact failure or malfunction.