If he was flying a Victor route (low altitude, as opposed to a high altitude jetway) from Santa Barbara(SBA), it should have brought him over Mammoth Pass, which is a safer route into MMH. The Tioga area is about 20 miles north of Mammoth Pass. Lost or sight seeing? We'll never know. As you can see from the aero chart below (recommended Victor route), this is a nearly impossible area for a safe forced landing.
http://wh94.fltplan.com/airway_viewer/?U...PECHART=LOCHARTWho knows? He had plenty of range (1500 mi) and ceiling (18800) to have been sightseeing very safely. Not much flat around North Dome, for sure, but Tuolomne, maybe?
I've noticed on many a trip inbound to SFO from Boston and other points east, the descent path is just about over North Dome. Sitting on the left side of the plane, I have many times had a spectacular view of HD, the Valley, Glacier Point etc from what I would judge to be about 20,000 ft. Maybe higher, definitely lower than cruising altitude, in any event. Its an amazing view. I wouldn't be at all surprised if this pilot was taking in the same view from 15000 or so, just after noon on a nice day.
