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Window Seat

San Francisco → Everett

SFO–PAE · San Francisco International Airport to Seattle Paine Field International Airport

Best bet

Right side

Strong betOne side has clearly more to look at.

Mount Rainier is the main event, and it has company: 7 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.

SFO to PAE: 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.SFOPAELEFT SIDERIGHT SIDE1234567891011121314
Distance from the route is to scale (up to 72 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. San Francisco Bay

    Either sideEarly8 mi off the route

    San Francisco Bay sits close enough to SFO that the runway in use and the procedure of the day decide whether it shows up at all.

    Runway dependent

  2. Golden Gate

    Either sideEarly6 mi off the route

    Whether Golden Gate appears comes down to how you get out of SFO, which is not something we can know in advance.

    Runway dependent

  3. Lassen Peak

    RightQuarter in45 mi off the route

    Look right about a quarter of the way in for Lassen Peak, about 45 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  4. Mount Shasta

    Either sideHalfway8 mi off the route

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

    Strong candidate

  5. Crater Lake

    RightHalfway11 mi off the route

    Around the halfway mark, Crater Lake sits roughly 11 miles to the right.

    Strong candidate

  6. Three Sisters

    RightThree quarters27 mi off the route

    Look right about three quarters of the way for Three Sisters, about 27 miles out.

    Good possibility

  7. Mount Jefferson

    RightThree quarters25 mi off the route

    Mount Jefferson is about 25 miles off the right, about three quarters of the way.

    Good possibility

  8. Mount Hood

    RightThree quarters30 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Mount Hood sits roughly 30 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

  9. Columbia River Gorge

    RightThree quarters25 mi off the route

    Look right about three quarters of the way for Columbia River Gorge, about 25 miles out.

    Distant possibility

  10. Mount St. Helens

    Either sideThree quarters5 mi off the route

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

    Strong candidate

  11. Mount Adams

    RightThree quarters39 mi off the route

    About three quarters of the way, Mount Adams sits roughly 39 miles to the right.

    Good possibility

  12. Mount Rainier

    RightNear the end25 mi off the route

    Look right late in the flight for Mount Rainier, about 25 miles out.

    Strong candidate

  13. Puget Sound

    Either sideNear the end7 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

  14. Olympic Mountains

    LeftNear the end72 mi off the route

    Late in the flight, Olympic Mountains sits roughly 72 miles to the left.

    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

711 mi
Great-circle distance
0°
Course out of SFO
0°
Course into PAE
9
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?

Everett → San FranciscoLeft 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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