What's the farthest distance you can see a mountain? (live, beach)
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Mountains have a way of distorting your sense of distance, they can appear so close, yet so far away.
I've driven from the Eastern Sierra's into Nevada, and looking out my rear-view window I can still the highest one (Mt. Whitney at 14,500) even crossing the Nevada state line, yet they're nearly 175+ miles away.
How about the Rockies. How far into eastern Colorado, or western Kansas can you still get a glimpse of them on a sunny day in summer? Or how about the Appalachian Mountains, the highest one, given the best of weather conditions, how far away can it be spotted? And the highest one in New England? Given the best of conditions, can you spot it as far away as Boston?
Mountains have a way of distorting your sense of distance, they can appear so close, yet so far away.
I've driven from the Eastern Sierra's into Nevada, and looking out my rear-view window I can still the highest one (Mt. Whitney at 14,500) even crossing the Nevada state line, yet they're nearly 175+ miles away.
How about the Rockies. How far into eastern Colorado, or western Kansas can you still get a glimpse of them on a sunny day in summer? Or how about the Appalachian Mountains, the highest one, given the best of weather conditions, how far away can it be spotted? And the highest one in New England? Given the best of conditions, can you spot it as far away as Boston?
Just curious.
You can see Mt. Whitney from Ridgecrest, CA on a clear day (most days), which is about 75 miles as the crow flies. You can see Telescope Peak (50 miles) from there as well (from certain areas).
You can see the Rockies from Fort Morgan, CO (about 100 miles), and can see Pikes Peak from Limon, CO (about 80 miles). You can't see any of the Rocky Mountains from Nebraska or Kansas...not even close.
On an exceptionally clear and cloudless day (probably only a few times a year), you can see Mount Rainier from Everett, WA, which is about 75 miles.
My hypothesis: 75-100 miles depending on the prominence of the mountain and local topography.
I have seen mountains more than 100 miles away. On a VERY clear day, driving south on the 101 freeway in Scottsdale, you can see a very faint outline of the Catalina mountains, that are just north of Tucson, about 105 miles away from Scottsdale.
When approaching Phoenix Sky Harbor, from the east, I have been able to see Mount Wrightson (about 150 miles south) without issue. On a similar approach I was able to see Humphries Peak (133 miles north) without issue.
I think the West is a particular good places to see long distances because 1) The general lack of trees, 2) The lack of humidity that tends to add a visibility reducing haze to the air, 3) and, of course, the elevation changes.
Mountains have a way of distorting your sense of distance, they can appear so close, yet so far away.
I've driven from the Eastern Sierra's into Nevada, and looking out my rear-view window I can still the highest one (Mt. Whitney at 14,500) even crossing the Nevada state line, yet they're nearly 175+ miles away.
How about the Rockies. How far into eastern Colorado, or western Kansas can you still get a glimpse of them on a sunny day in summer? Or how about the Appalachian Mountains, the highest one, given the best of weather conditions, how far away can it be spotted? And the highest one in New England? Given the best of conditions, can you spot it as far away as Boston?
Just curious.
The highest mountain in New England is Mt. Washington in northern NH, about 130 miles north of downtown Boston. You can't see it from Boston unless you're in a plane.
However, on a clear day you can see Mt. Washington from the harbor at Portland, Maine, which is about 65 miles to the southeast. Of course, we're talking about sea level here -- if you're at a higher elevation it can be seen from farther away. I know it can be seen from Mt. Whiteface near Lake Placid, NY, which is about 130 miles to the west.
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Can't see anything here where I am.
And when I lived in Portland, Maine, I could see Mt.Washington 65 miles away like Verseau said. There was a specific part of campus up on a hill where you could see Mt.Washington and the surrounding mountains.
I was going to say, in perfect conditions I bet you can see about 150-200 miles. But the conditions of weather and landscape have to be perfect.
It may sound weird, but the elevation of the peak and the elevation of the viewer both have to be really high. Otherwise the curvature of the earth gets in the way. But if you are high enough you can offset the curvature enough to see. But, typically the further away you get from a mountain the lower in elevation you go. There aren't too many places in the world that are 200 miles away from a mountain that are as tall as, well, a mountain.
I've seen spectacular postcards of Los Angeles with the San Gabriel or San Bernardino Mountains as a backdrop on a clear day, but everytime I've been there I was deprived of that great view, either due to haze, fog or smog.
I'd love to go there sometime and see it, like from a beach along the Pacific, like Santa Monica or Manhattan Beach.
I'm planning to go there this summer, will I be so lucky this time!
I've seen spectacular postcards of Los Angeles with the San Gabriel or San Bernardino Mountains as a backdrop on a clear day, but everytime I've been there I was deprived of that great view, either due to haze, fog or smog.
I'd love to go there sometime and see it, like from a beach along the Pacific, like Santa Monica or Manhattan Beach.
I'm planning to go there this summer, will I be so lucky this time!
The mountains are best seen when it's windy (like in Fall) -- as long as the mountains aren't on fire. However, you don't see them too often in the summer because of smog (especially from that far away). You can't even see hills that are 3 miles away when it's smoggy.
However, Signal Hill near Long Beach is a good place to take in the view (if you're lucky enough to get one).
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