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Bellingham → Oakland

BLI–OAK · Bellingham International Airport to Oakland International Airport

Best bet

Left side

Strong betOne side has clearly more to look at.

Crater Lake is the main event, and it has company: 9 more worth looking at out the left.

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.

BLI to OAK: 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.BLIOAKLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE12345678910111213141516
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 65 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. Mount Baker

    LeftEarly33 mi off the route

    Mount Baker sits close enough to BLI that the runway in use and the procedure of the day decide whether it shows up at all.

    Runway dependent

  2. San Juan Islands

    RightEarly23 mi off the route

    Whether San Juan Islands appears comes down to how you get out of BLI, which is not something we can know in advance.

    Runway dependent

  3. Glacier Peak

    LeftEarly65 mi off the route

    Look left early in the flight for Glacier Peak, about 65 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  4. Olympic Mountains

    RightEarly62 mi off the route

    Olympic Mountains is about 62 miles off the right, early in the flight.

    Distant possibility

  5. Puget Sound

    Either sideEarly3 mi off the route

    Puget Sound passes almost directly beneath early in the flight, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Good possibility

  6. Mount Rainier

    LeftQuarter in34 mi off the route

    Look left about a quarter of the way in for Mount Rainier, about 34 miles out.

    Strong candidate

  7. Mount St. Helens

    LeftQuarter in13 mi off the route

    Mount St. Helens is about 13 miles off the left, about a quarter of the way in.

    Strong candidate

  8. Mount Adams

    LeftQuarter in46 mi off the route

    About a quarter of the way in, Mount Adams sits roughly 46 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  9. Columbia River Gorge

    LeftQuarter in31 mi off the route

    Look left about a quarter of the way in for Columbia River Gorge, about 31 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  10. Mount Hood

    LeftQuarter in36 mi off the route

    Mount Hood is about 36 miles off the left, about a quarter of the way in.

    Good possibility

  11. Mount Jefferson

    LeftHalfway30 mi off the route

    Around the halfway mark, Mount Jefferson sits roughly 30 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  12. Three Sisters

    LeftHalfway31 mi off the route

    Look left around the halfway mark for Three Sisters, about 31 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  13. Crater Lake

    LeftHalfway13 mi off the route

    Crater Lake is about 13 miles off the left, around the halfway mark.

    Strong candidate

  14. Mount Shasta

    Either sideThree quarters6 mi off the route

    Mount Shasta passes almost directly beneath about three quarters of the way, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Strong candidate

  15. Lassen Peak

    LeftThree quarters41 mi off the route

    Look left about three quarters of the way for Lassen Peak, about 41 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  16. Golden Gate

    RightNear the end14 mi off the route

    Whether Golden Gate appears comes down to how you come into OAK, which is not something we can know in advance.

    Runway dependent

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

765 mi
Great-circle distance
179°
Course out of BLI
179°
Course into OAK
11
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?

Oakland → BellinghamRight 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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