EXPERIENCED CPR PLT ERRONEOUSLY ENTERS IMC CONDITIONS WITHOUT CLRNC.

Narrative

THE FLT WAS FROM SHOW LOW (SOW) TO THE GRAND CANYON ARPT (GCN) IN VFR CONDITIONS. WX AT SOW WAS BETTER THAN 4000 FT BROKEN AND GCN WAS RPTING 4600 FT BROKEN WITH 10+ MI VISIBILITY. AN IFR FLT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED BUT WAS NOT PICKED UP ON DEP AS IT APPEARED THE FLT COULD BE MADE IN VFR CONDITIONS. N OF HUMPHREYS PEAK AT 8500 FT AND 58 MI FROM GRAND CANYON; I APCHED A SNOW SHOWER. IT LOOKED LIKE; AT FIRST; THAT I COULD SEE PAST THE SNOW SQUALL UNTIL I WAS TOO CLOSE. I EXECUTED A DSNDING 180 DEG TURN TO 7500 FT. IN THE TURN I ENTERED IMC CONDITIONS; THE CEILING HAD DROPPED BEHIND AND ALL AROUND ME. I ATTEMPTED A NUMBER OF RADIO CALLS ON CTR FREQS AND COULD NOT RAISE ANYONE. AT THAT POINT I TUNED IN THE TUBA CITY (TBC) VOR; TURNED DIRECTLY TOWARD THE VOR AND BEGAN AN IMMEDIATE CLB ATTEMPTING TO RAISE ZLA. ONCE I TOLD ZLA WHERE I WAS; THEY TOLD ME TO CONTACT ZAB; ZAB TOLD ME TO CONTACT ZDV. ZDV ASSIGNED ME A XPONDER CODE AND RADAR IDENTED ME; BUT DID NOT GIVE ME A CLRNC. I EXPLAINED TO ZDV THAT I HAD AN IFR FLT PLAN ON FILE SHOW LOW TO GRAND CANYON. THEY FOUND THE FLT PLAN(S) AND SAID 'YES THERE WERE 3 FLT PLANS ON FILE; WHICH ONE DID YOU WANT?' AT THAT POINT I ASKED FOR A CLRNC PRESENT POS DIRECT TO GRAND CANYON. THEY THEN (WITHOUT A CLRNC) HANDED ME OFF TO ZLA. ZLA GAVE ME ANOTHER XPONDER CODE AND FINALLY GAVE ME A CLRNC AND RADAR VECTOR TO THE GRAND CANYON ILS. GRAND CANYON AWOS DURING THIS TIME WAS SAYING THE WX WAS DETERIORATING RAPIDLY AND WAS IFR WITH 1/2 - 3/4 MI VISIBILITY. ONCE I RECEIVED A CLRNC THE FLT WAS NORMAL ON THE GRAND CANYON. AT NO TIME DID I GET CLOSE TO ANY AIRWAY OR UP TO THE MEA IN THE AREA. I WAS UNABLE TO STAY EVEN AT 7500 FT AS THERE ARE MOUNTAIN PEAKS IN THE AREA THAT REACH UP TO 7400 FT. AND TO THE S OF ME WAS HUMPHREYS PEAK; WHICH IS 12600 FT. MY ERROR WAS IN NOT WATCHING THE WX BEHIND ME CLOSE ENOUGH AND TRYING TO PROCEED VFR IN AN AREA WHERE THE WX WAS DETERIORATING AND RADIO RECEPTION IS VERY LIMITED. HAD I HAD ANY IDEA THE WX AT GRAND CANYON HAD DETERIORATED; I WOULD HAVE PICKED UP THE CLRNC. THE REMAINDER OF THE FLTS; GRAND CANYON TO FLAGSTAFF AND FLAGSTAFF TO PHOENIX WERE CONDUCTED UNDER IFR WITHOUT INCIDENT. THIS WAS THE FIRST MAJOR SNOW IN THIS AREA FOR THIS WINTER AND I JUST PUSHED TOO FAR. THIS WAS A SCHEDULED FAR PART 91 CARGO FLT.