Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Downs, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Downs and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Downs
- Astronomy & Satellites ...
- Whether using binoculars, a small telescope or the naked-eye, the Heavens-Above website can help you to find your way around the night-time sky. In addition to detailed sky charts, their website will help you find planets, asteriods, comets, satellites and their tracks across the sky.
- To give accurate results, Heavens-Above requires the latitude and longitude of your location. As a starting point, when we link to Heavens-Above, we pass this GPS location for Downs:
- 32.264867, -85.784119
- Once you're on the Heavens-Above website, you can improve its accuracy by giving a more precise longitude and latitude as your actual position.
- The Heavens-Above Website, centered on Downs
- Bird Watching ...
- We enjoy finding new spots for bird watching and we use the eBird website for local sighting reports and to help identify hotspots.
- The eBird website is organized on a county-by-county basis. We have selected Macon County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Macon County
- Since Downs is near Bullock County and also Montgomery County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Bullock County
- eBird sighting report for Montgomery County
- Waymarking ...
- Looking for somewhere out of the ordinary? Find a unique place and want to share it with others? Then it's time to visit Waymarking.com:
- Waymark.com
Communities Also Named Downs ...
We found fourteen communities that share the name Downs.
There is one other community in Alabama which is also named Downs.
Beyond Alabama, we know of another thirteen communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Located In Alabama ...
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Georgia
- Warren County
- This Downs is located in Warren County and lies 192 miles [309 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Downs that is located in Macon County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Warren County community of Downs.
- Washington County
- This Downs is located in Washington County and lies 189 miles [304.2 km] to the east northeast of the Downs that is located in Macon County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Downs.
- Illinois
- Kansas
- Maryland
- North Carolina
- Oregon
- South Carolina
- Texas
- Utah
- Salt Lake County
- This Downs is located in Salt Lake County and lies 1,550 miles [2,494.5 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Downs that is located in Macon County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Salt Lake County community of Downs.
- Weber County
- This Downs is located in Weber County and lies 1,568 miles [2,523.5 km] to the west northwest of the Downs that is located in Macon County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Weber County community of Downs.
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Georgia
Curious and Interesting Names Near Downs ...
As we travel, we always see a community with a name that gives pause. While there are names which are interesting or familiar, some catch our attention or strike our fancy. We always wonder about such a name. If time permits and the community is not too far, we'll usually try to make a side-trip.
- Bruceville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bruceville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bruceville
- Bruceville is located in Bullock County
- Cornerstone
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cornerstone have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cornerstone
- Cornerstone is located in Bullock County
- Cotton Valley
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cotton Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cotton Valley
- Cotton Valley is located in Macon County
- Cross Keys
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cross Keys have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Keys
- Cross Keys is located in Macon County
- Hardaway
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west) - Hector
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest) - Liverpool
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north) - Mitchell
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchell
- Mitchell is located in Bullock County
- Peachburg
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast) - Shorter
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shorter have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shorter
- Shorter is located in Macon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 383 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Shorter <4>
- Union Springs
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Union Springs
- Union Springs is located in Bullock County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,352 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Union Springs <4>
How Far From Downs to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Downs to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Downs and extending to:
- Tuskegee, which is the Seat of Macon County, lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<1> to the north northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Downs to Tuskegee, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 31 miles [49.9 km] to the west northwest (WNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just over a day and walking would take most of two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 670 miles [1,078.3 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 27 days and walking would take 38 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,568 miles [10,570.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,268 miles [11,696.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,147 miles [8,283.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Downs. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Downs) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Downs. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.2649, Longitude: -85.7841 In this case, the coordinates for Downs have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer. Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name. Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time. Also keep in mind that Downs could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out. |
| <3> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <4> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <5> | While we have tried to pick reasonable speeds, the rate of travel is very theoretical - obstacles like fences, hills, lakes, river crossings and rest stops have been ignored. When we say 'Days' of travel, we're assuming 8 hours of travel per day. |
| <6> | The shortest line can be visualized by stretching a string on a Globe from Point A to Point B - this is known as a Great Circle Route. Where you might expect the shortest route from Downs to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 312.992 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 308.323 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.163 degrees. |