Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Houses Ferry, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Houses Ferry and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Houses Ferry
- 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 Houses Ferry:
- 32.858458, -86.449977
- 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 Houses Ferry
- 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 Chilton County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Chilton County
- Since Houses Ferry is near Coosa County and also Elmore County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Coosa County
- eBird sighting report for Elmore 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
Curious and Interesting Names Near Houses Ferry ...
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.
- Cooper
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest) - Dollar
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast) - Gap of the Mountain
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gap of the Mountain have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gap of the Mountain
- Gap of the Mountain is located in Chilton County
- Gold Branch
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gold Branch have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Branch
- Gold Branch is located in Coosa County
- Kellys Crossroads
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kellys Crossroads have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kellys Crossroads
- Kellys Crossroads is located in Coosa County
- Knights Ferry
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Knights Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Knights Ferry
- Knights Ferry is located in Chilton County
- Lightwood
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south) - Lyle
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east) - Mountain Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Creek
- Mountain Creek is located in Chilton County
- Richville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east) - Travelers Rest
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Travelers Rest have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Travelers Rest
- Travelers Rest is located in Coosa County
How Far From Houses Ferry to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Houses Ferry to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Houses Ferry and extending to:
- Clanton, which is the Seat of Chilton County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<2> to the west. If you could walk a straight line from Houses Ferry to Clanton, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 34 miles [54.7 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just about two full days and walking would take most of two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 671 miles [1,079.9 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 27 days and walking would take 39 days.
- The shortest distance<4> 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).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,273 miles [11,704.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,150 miles [8,288.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Houses Ferry. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Houses Ferry) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Houses Ferry. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.8585, Longitude: -86.4500 In this case, the coordinates for Houses Ferry have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Houses Ferry to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 313.424 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 308.904 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.296 degrees. |