Skyhawk 172/Cutlass 172
Flight Crew Private
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 5.2; Flight Crew Total 259; Flight Crew Type 116
Confusion; Time Pressure
No Specific Anomaly Occurred All Types
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Requested ATC Assistance / Clarification
Airport; Human Factors
Landing at night at a large airport. Was planning to exit at Echo and planned touch down accordingly. After landing was instructed to exit the runway at Echo and contact ground. Everything at this point was as planned and prepared for; the problem was that I could not see Echo exit. I informed the controller about this fact and that I had missed the exit.  She answered that that I had not and was right by where I was.  I could see the Echo sign; but not the actual taxi way. I therefore turned the aircraft 90 degrees to shine my landing light onto the side of the runway.  The controller thought that I was turning the aircraft 180 which I was not.At the end I was not able to see exit Echo and followed the controller's instructions down to Delta that I found easily due to the green lights marking the exit. This was a very frustrating experience since I had reviewed the ground chart and knew where I was going. Even though I've been at large airports before; the lights at this airport looked like a forest without ability to understand patterns. I contribute this to the seating position in the Cessna; I was simply not high enough to make sense of the markings. My suggestion for improvement is to get better markings for Echo and that the exit be tested from a low seating position aircraft.
A private pilot flying a C172 landing at a large airport at night; was asked to exit the runway at taxiway E; but was unable to identify it; although Tower advised he was 'at' E. The reporter cited the lights looking like 'a forest;' and his 'low seating position' in the light aircraft as contributing factors.