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Everett → Palm Springs

PAE–PSP · Seattle Paine Field International Airport to Palm Springs 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: 5 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.

PAE to PSP: 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.PAEPSPLEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE12345678910111213
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 62 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. Puget Sound

    RightEarly8 mi off the route

    Puget Sound sits close enough to PAE that the runway in use and the procedure of the day decide whether it shows up at all.

    Runway dependent

  2. Glacier Peak

    LeftEarly56 mi off the route

    Early in the flight, Glacier Peak sits roughly 56 miles to the left.

    Distant possibility

  3. Mount Rainier

    Either sideEarly1 mi off the route

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

    Strong candidate

  4. Mount St. Helens

    RightEarly35 mi off the route

    Mount St. Helens is about 35 miles off the right, early in the flight.

    Good possibility

  5. Mount Adams

    Either sideEarly3 mi off the route

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

    Strong candidate

  6. Columbia River Gorge

    RightEarly28 mi off the route

    Look right early in the flight for Columbia River Gorge, about 28 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  7. Mount Hood

    RightQuarter in31 mi off the route

    Mount Hood is about 31 miles off the right, about a quarter of the way in.

    Good possibility

  8. Mount Jefferson

    RightQuarter in51 mi off the route

    About a quarter of the way in, Mount Jefferson sits roughly 51 miles to the right.

    Distant possibility

  9. Three Sisters

    RightQuarter in62 mi off the route

    Look right about a quarter of the way in for Three Sisters, about 62 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  10. Mount Whitney

    RightThree quarters45 mi off the route

    Mount Whitney is about 45 miles off the right, about three quarters of the way.

    Distant possibility

  11. Death Valley

    LeftThree quarters29 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Death Valley sits roughly 29 miles to the left.

    Good possibility

  12. San Gorgonio Mountain

    RightNear the end13 mi off the route

    Whether San Gorgonio Mountain appears comes down to how you come into PSP, which is not something we can know in advance.

    Runway dependent

  13. San Jacinto Peak

    RightNear the end10 mi off the route

    San Jacinto Peak sits close enough to PSP that the runway in use and the procedure of the day decide whether it shows up at all.

    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

1,018 mi
Great-circle distance
161°
Course out of PAE
165°
Course into PSP
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?

Palm Springs → EverettLeft 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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