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Bellingham → Portland

BLI–PDX · Bellingham International Airport to Portland International Airport

Best bet

Left side

Strong betOne side has clearly more to look at.

Mount Rainier is the main event, and it has company: 2 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 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.BLIPDXLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE12345678
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 59 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

    RightEarly22 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. Puget Sound

    Either sideQuarter in6 mi off the route

    Puget Sound passes almost directly beneath about a quarter of the way in, which is the one place a window seat can't help you.

    Good possibility

  4. Olympic Mountains

    RightQuarter in59 mi off the route

    Olympic Mountains is about 59 miles off the right, about a quarter of the way in.

    Distant possibility

  5. Mount Rainier

    LeftThree quarters39 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Mount Rainier sits roughly 39 miles to the left.

    Good possibility

  6. Mount Adams

    LeftThree quarters52 mi off the route

    Look left about three quarters of the way for Mount Adams, about 52 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Mount St. Helens

    LeftThree quarters19 mi off the route

    Mount St. Helens is about 19 miles off the left, about three quarters of the way.

    Good possibility

  8. Columbia River Gorge

    LeftNear the end39 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

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

221 mi
Great-circle distance
181°
Course out of BLI
181°
Course into PDX
4
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 → 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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