PVT PLT ACTS AS OWN WX FORECASTER AND PERFORMS TKOF AT NON TWR ARPT. DIVERSION TO ALTERNATE ARPT AS FOG BLOWS IN AND CLOSES ARPT.

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AFTER ARISING EARLY I DECIDED TO GET IN AN HR'S FLT. I WAS ABLE TO SEE MT RANIER (ABOUT 30 NM AWAY) AND QUITE A BIT OF BLUE SKY; AND ALTHOUGH A LITTLE HAZY NEAR THE GND; THE WX LOOKED FINE. BY THE TIME I REACHED THE ARPT; THE SKY HAD BEGUN TO GRAY OVER AND WHEN I FINISHED MY PREFLT I HAD BEGUN TO THINK ABOUT CHKING THE WX. JUST THEN; A HELI TOOK OFF AND DEPARTED TO THE E. I WATCHED THE HELI DEPART AND DECIDED TO SKIP THE BRIEFING SINCE I INTENDED TO STAY IN THE PATTERN WORKING ON SOFT FIELD LNDGS. ON CLBOUT; I REALIZED THAT I HAD MISJUDGED THE RAPIDITY WITH WHICH THE WX WAS CHANGING. IN FRONT AND TO MY R THE HAZE WAS RAPIDLY GETTING THICKER. WHEN I TURNED XWIND; I COULD SEE A LOW LYING LAYER OF FOG BLOWING IN FROM THE W. IT WAS APPARENT THAT BY THE TIME I FLEW THE PATTERN; THE VISIBILITY AT PIERCE COUNTY ARPT WOULD BE EXTREMELY MARGINAL. AT 1500 FT I WAS VFR BUT THE FOG UNDER ME WAS RAPIDLY BECOMING SOLID. I FLEW S AND FOUND KAPOWSIN CLR. I LANDED AT KAPOWSIN AND WAITED UNTIL THE FOG CLRED (ABOUT 4 HRS). WHEN I NOTICED THAT THE HAZE HAD GOTTEN THICKER AS I PREFLTED; I SHOULD HAVE BEEN ALERTED TO THE POSSIBILITY OF THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF FOG. HAD I GOTTEN A WX BRIEFING (EVEN THOUGH I INTENDED TO STAY IN THE PATTERN) I WOULD PROBABLY HAVE REALIZED WHAT WAS HAPPENING. THE ONLY THINGS I DID RIGHT WERE REALIZING THAT A RETURN TO PIERCE COUNTY WAS CHANCY AND THAT I COULD PROBABLY FIND AN ARPT STILL VFR IF I ACTED QUICKLY. I WAS CARRYING MY IFR CHARTS AND APCH PLATES; SO COULD HAVE FILED AND GONE TO AN RPT WHICH WAS STILL ABOVE MINIMUMS. I HAD 5 HRS FUEL ON BOARD.