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Austin → Portland

AUS–PDX · Austin–Bergstrom International Airport to Portland International Airport

Best bet

Right side

Strong betOne side has clearly more to look at.

Mount Hood is the main event, and it has company: 3 more worth looking at out the right.

Flight paths move around. Treat this as the better bet, not a promise.

What you might see

In flight order, with distance measured from the representative route.

AUS to PDX: where each landmark sits relative to the routeA diagram of the representative route running left to right, with the departure airport at the left and the arrival airport at the right. Landmarks on the left side of the aircraft are plotted above the route line and landmarks on the right side below it, each at its distance from the route. The numbered list below this diagram carries the same information as text.AUSPDXLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE123456789
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 63 miles); the shaded ends are the 40-mile zones around each airport where the runway in use decides the view. Numbers match the list below. Hollow markers didn't count toward the recommendation.

  1. Rio Grande Gorge

    Either sideHalfway2 mi off the route

    Rio Grande Gorge passes almost directly beneath around the halfway mark, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Good possibility

  2. San Juan Mountains

    Either sideHalfway5 mi off the route

    San Juan Mountains passes almost directly beneath around the halfway mark, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Strong candidate

  3. Arches National Park

    LeftHalfway16 mi off the route

    Look left around the halfway mark for Arches National Park, about 16 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  4. Wasatch Range

    RightThree quarters10 mi off the route

    Wasatch Range is about 10 miles off the right, about three quarters of the way.

    Good possibility

  5. Great Salt Lake

    RightThree quarters20 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Great Salt Lake sits roughly 20 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

  6. Mount Jefferson

    LeftNear the end35 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for Mount Jefferson, about 35 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Mount Hood

    RightNear the end9 mi off the route

    Mount Hood is about 9 miles off the right, late in the flight.

    Strong candidate

  8. Columbia River Gorge

    RightNear the end26 mi off the route

    Whether Columbia River Gorge appears comes down to how you come into PDX, which is not something we can know in advance.

    Runway dependent

  9. Mount Adams

    RightNear the end63 mi off the route

    Look right late in the flight for Mount Adams, about 63 miles out.

    Distant possibility

The sun

Flying soon? Add your date and departure time and we'll work out where the sun should be, and which side gets less of it.

Airport codes or city names. SEA, Seattle, and Seattle-Tacoma all work.

Skip the date and you still get the landmark answer. Add it and we work out where the sun will be, using the departure airport's local time.

The route we used

1,714 mi
Great-circle distance
315°
Course out of AUS
300°
Course into PDX
6
Landmarks that counted

That is the shortest path between the two airports, used as a representative corridor rather than a flight plan. The first and last 40 miles are treated as uncertain, because that part of the flight is shaped by the runway in use and the published departure or arrival procedure. Anything in those zones is listed and marked, never counted toward the recommendation.

Left and right, from where?

Left and right are from your perspective sitting in the cabin, facing the front of the aircraft. Seat letters are not a reliable guide to which side you are on, because aircraft are configured differently.

Why this isn't guaranteed

Flights don't follow the same path every day. Runway configuration, weather deviations, traffic, and air traffic control all move the track around, and none of it is knowable in advance. We also have nothing to say about cloud cover, which is the other thing standing between you and Mount Rainier. The full method.

Flying the other way?

Portland → AustinLeft side

Calculated from scratch, not by flipping this one. The landmarks arrive in the opposite order, the sun is somewhere else entirely, and the answer changes with them.

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