Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Durango, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Durango and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Durango
- 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 Durango:
- 42.560973, -90.774681
- 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 Durango
- 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 Dubuque County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Dubuque County
- Since Durango is near Grant County and also Jo Daviess County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Grant County
- eBird sighting report for Jo Daviess 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 Durango ...
We found three communities that share the name Durango.
Within Iowa, the name Durango is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another three communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Colorado
- Florida
- Texas
Curious and Interesting Names Near Durango ...
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.
- Balltown
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest) - Budd
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest) - Cathedral Square
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cathedral Square have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cathedral Square
- Cathedral Square is located in Dubuque County
- Cottage Hill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottage Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Hill
- Cottage Hill is located in Dubuque County
- Eagle Point
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Point
- Eagle Point is located in Dubuque County
- Five Points
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Five Points have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Points
- Five Points is located in Dubuque County
- Lore
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Rose
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Sageville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east) - Twin Springs
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Twin Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Twin Springs
- Twin Springs is located in Dubuque County
How Far From Durango 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 city such as Durango to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Durango and extending to:
- Dubuque, which is the Seat of Dubuque County, lies just to the Southeast.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 160 miles [257.5 km]<1> to the west southwest (WSW). If you could drive a straight line from Durango to Des Moines, with an average speed<3>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 9 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 7 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 761 miles [1,224.7 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 30 days and walking would take 44 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,261 miles [10,076.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,007 miles [11,276.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,899 miles [7,884.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Durango. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Dubuque County: www.dubuquecounty.org/
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Durango) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Durango. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.5610, Longitude: -90.7747 In this case, the coordinates for Durango have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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. |
| <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 Durango 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 316.552 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 313.842 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.961 degrees. |