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Des Moines → Portland

DSM–PDX · Des Moines International Airport to Portland International Airport

Best bet

Either side

Both sides workThe two sides come out close to level.

Both sides have something going for them, and the totals come out close enough that picking one would be a coin flip with extra steps.

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.

DSM 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.DSMPDXLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE123456789101112
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 88 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. Badlands

    RightQuarter in8 mi off the route

    Badlands is about 8 miles off the right, about a quarter of the way in.

    Good possibility

  2. Black Hills

    Either sideHalfway3 mi off the route

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

    Good possibility

  3. Bighorn Mountains

    Either sideHalfway2 mi off the route

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

    Good possibility

  4. Yellowstone Lake

    LeftHalfway25 mi off the route

    Yellowstone Lake is about 25 miles off the left, around the halfway mark.

    Good possibility

  5. Hells Canyon

    Either sideThree quarters1 mi off the route

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

    Good possibility

  6. Wallowa Mountains

    LeftThree quarters16 mi off the route

    Look left about three quarters of the way for Wallowa Mountains, about 16 miles out.

    Good possibility

  7. Mount Adams

    RightNear the end43 mi off the route

    Mount Adams is about 43 miles off the right, late in the flight.

    Distant possibility

  8. Mount Hood

    LeftNear the end14 mi off the route

    Late in the flight, Mount Hood sits roughly 14 miles to the left.

    Strong candidate

  9. Mount Jefferson

    LeftNear the end63 mi off the route

    Look left late in the flight for Mount Jefferson, about 63 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  10. Columbia River Gorge

    RightNear the end9 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

  11. Mount Rainier

    RightNear the end88 mi off the route

    Late in the flight, Mount Rainier sits roughly 88 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  12. Mount St. Helens

    RightNear the end43 mi off the route

    Look right late in the flight for Mount St. Helens, about 43 miles out.

    Good 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

1,467 mi
Great-circle distance
291°
Course out of DSM
271°
Course into PDX
8
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 → Des MoinesEither 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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