Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Olex, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Olex and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Olex
- 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 Olex:
- 45.497826, -120.168519
- 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 Olex
- 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 Gilliam County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Gilliam County
- Since Olex is near Morrow County and also Sherman County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Morrow County
- eBird sighting report for Sherman 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 Olex ...
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.
- Cecil
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northeast) - Early ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the northwest) - Eightmile
(23 miles [37 km] to the southeast) - Emigrant Springs ‑ Historic
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emigrant Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emigrant Springs
- Emigrant Springs is located in Sherman County
- Gooseberry
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gooseberry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gooseberry
- Gooseberry is located in Morrow County
- Harmony
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the west) - Jordan
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the east) - Monkland
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the west) - Rock Creek
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rock Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Creek
- Rock Creek is located in Gilliam County
- Sinks ‑ Historic
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sinks
- Sinks is located in Sherman County
- Thirtymile
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thirtymile have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thirtymile
- Thirtymile is located in Gilliam County
- Willows
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the north)
How Far From Olex to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Olex to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Olex and extending to:
- Condon, which is the Seat of Gilliam County, lies 18 miles [29 km]<2> to the south. If you could walk a straight line from Olex to Condon, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take five to six hours.
- Salem, which is the State Capital of Oregon, lies 144 miles [231.7 km] to the west southwest (WSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,225 miles [3,580.8 km] to the east (E). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 87 days and walking would take 127 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,875 miles [11,064.2 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,640 miles [12,295.4 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,726 miles [9,215.1 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Olex. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Oregon: https://www.oregon.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 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Olex) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Olex. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.4978, Longitude: -120.1685 In this case, the coordinates for Olex 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 Olex 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 338.973 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 340.103 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 326.505 degrees. |