GA SMA PLT REQUESTS FLT ASSISTANCE TO NEAREST ARPT WHEN HE BECOMES CONCERNED ABOUT FUEL REMAINING.

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I DEPARTED DODGE CITY; KS; AT NIGHT ON A VFR FLT PLAN TO COLORADO SPRINGS; CO. I HAD GOTTEN A WX BRIEFING AND 2 HRS AND 40 MINS AND FUEL ON BOARD TO BE 3 HRS AND 30 MINS MEETING THE VFR NIGHT FUEL REQUIREMENTS. BOTH OF THESE ESTIMATES WERE WRONG. WINDS ALOFT WERE STRONGER THAN FORECAST AND MY ESTIMATION OF FUEL TIME WAS WRONG. I HAD FLOWN 2 HRS WHEN I BECAME CONCERNED ABOUT MY FUEL. THE GAUGES WERE INDICATING MORE THAN 1/4 FULL; BUT I KNEW THAT WOULDN'T GET ME TO MY DEST. I ALTERED MY COURSE FROM HDG TO THE NEXT VOR WHICH IS IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE TO HDG TO PUEBLO. I THOUGHT I COULD MAKE IT TO PUEBLO WITH 1/4 FULL TANKS. I ASKED CENTER TO TELL ME HOW FAR THEY HAD ME FROM PUEBLO AND THEY SAID 42 MI (?). I CHKED MY FUEL GAUGES AGAIN AND IN A VERY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME THEY WERE AT 1/8 FULL (OR SHOULD I SAY 7/8 EMPTY?). IT WAS THEN THAT I TOLD CENTER I WANTED RADAR VECTORS TO THE NEAREST ARPT BECAUSE I WAS LOW ON FUEL. CENTER TOLD ME WHERE AN ARPT WAS. (I STILL THOUGHT IT WAS PUEBLO; BUT WAS CONFUSED WHEN THE VOR SAID PUEBLO WAS W AND I WAS NOW FLYING S. IT TURNED OUT TO BE LA JUNTA AND MY HDG INDICATOR DID AGREE WITH MY COMPASS.) I STAYED IN COM WITH CENTER UNTIL I LANDED SAFELY AT LA JUNTA. I THINK THE MAIN PROB WAS RELYING ON GAS GAUGES THAT ARE INACCURATE; IMPROPERLY FIGURING MY FUEL TIME AND GREATER THAN FORECAST HEADWINDS. I AM REVIEWING THE DATA ON FIGURING FUEL TIME AND WILL NOT BE COMPLACENT AGAIN BY JUST ESTIMATING MY TIME. I THINK THE ACTIONS I TOOK AFTER THE PROB WAS DISCOVERED WERE APPROPRIATE. 2 THINGS WERE MOST IMPORTANT; THE USE OF VFR FLT FOLLOWING AND A WILLINGNESS TO CONFESS MY PROB TO CENTER. (BY THE WAY; I HAD MORE FUEL THAN THE GAUGES INDICATED; BUT NOT ENOUGH FOR VFR NIGHT FUEL MINIMUMS.)