Sunset on my SFO to JFK flight
The US is really an amazing country; it has mountains, deserts, lakes, rivers, hills, small towns, glistening cities, and prairies. It has 4 seasons, multiple accents, a variety of religions, and a variety of cultures. Out of all of my travels around the globe it is probably the country with the most diversity of landscape and culture. It’s also big, from coast to coast it is 2,600 miles.
I’ve been fortunate to experience the diversity of the US by living on the east coast, west coast, and Midwest. This week I crossed over all of those areas on a flight from San Francisco to New York City. The day was crystal clear and I was able to take in the vast country dusted in snow from 30,000 feet.
I found myself mesmerized by the patterns and the geography out my window seat. We dipped in and out of snowy patches, and cloudbanks. Occasionally it would be completely clear displaying the checkerboard Midwest. As much as I love to travel outside the US, I realize that I don’t always give America the respect it’s due. I decided to share my window view with you; my view of America on my 5 hour flight.
Leaving San Francisco
Shortly after take-off we run into clouds that look like cotton balls
Starting to see a dusting of snow in California
A lake appears in the brown landscape in Eastern California
A river runs through it…
The beginning of a snow line in the midwest
Snow covering the miles sections of the Midwest
A mild winter entering the Eastern US
Flying over Manhattan’s Central Park and Time’s Square preparing for JFK landing
I received the inspiration for this post from a post I read a long time ago from Keith from Velvet Escape who has a series of airplane views!
By Lynn February 17, 2012 - 10:21 am
Wow Sherry, gorgeous shots the whole way!
By DAD February 17, 2012 - 10:55 am
Sherry, You did a good job of getting good photos through the airline window.
DAD
By Barbara Weibel February 17, 2012 - 8:18 pm
Certainly show how ORDERLY the Midwest is! 🙂
By Mark H February 22, 2012 - 7:06 pm
I love the neat grids of the farmlands across the centre of the US. It does show the diversity of your remarkable country.
By Nomadic Samuel February 22, 2012 - 8:42 pm
Those are incredible shots Sherry! I admit I rarely take photos when flying but I’m inspired to try it out more now.
By Sherry February 26, 2012 - 9:31 pm
It is a good reason to get a window seat occasionally!
By Joe W February 24, 2012 - 12:50 pm
awesome, the Manhattan one was my favorite
By Sherry February 26, 2012 - 9:27 pm
Ha – I have to admit – that was a slight accident. I just wanted to take a pic of all of the lights. It wasn’t until I saw it on my screen that I realized I actually shot the island of Manhattan and you could see the park and Times Square! A pleasant surprise!
By Tash March 3, 2012 - 10:39 pm
Wow, these are amazing!
By Deb March 7, 2012 - 12:01 am
Love these! That one of the “Snow covering the miles sections of the Midwest” Is outstanding. It looks like a map drawing. Great work Sherry.
By Nico March 12, 2012 - 2:04 pm
I love this! And you’re right, window seat photos provide almost a surreal perspective of how humans have altered the landscape, and that those on the ground are totally unaware makes the effect all the more profound.
I’m a big fan of taking window seat photos as well – been doing it for years. I documented my flight back from India (via Dubai) in a similar way, taking shots along the way. That flight passed over very much uninhabited country, but the effect is the same I think, making that which is invisible to those on the ground totally and spectacularly apparent.
http://www.tentimesone.com/india-to-san-francisco-at-35000-feet/
By Christopher Johnston March 3, 2015 - 12:37 pm
I’m curious why you didn’t get any shots of the Rockies or the Appalachians.
By Sherry March 3, 2015 - 2:05 pm
I don’t believe that we flew over the Appalachians – or at least anything meaningful that I saw from my window seat. As for the Rockies – not sure – but I might have been sleeping during that time or there could have been cloud cover! I clearly was awake for the midwest portion!