Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Algoma, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Algoma and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Algoma
- 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 Algoma:
- 37.055045, -80.087261
- 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 Algoma
- 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 Franklin County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Franklin County
- Since Algoma is near Floyd County and also Roanoke County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Floyd County
- eBird sighting report for Roanoke 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 Algoma ...
We found eight communities that share the name Algoma.
Within Virginia, the name Algoma is unique.
Beyond Virginia, we know of another eight communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these eight communities, seven are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- California
- Idaho
- Bonner County
- This Algoma is located in Bonner County and lies 1,983 miles [3,191.3 km]<2> to the northwest of the Algoma that is located in Franklin County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Bonner County community of Algoma.
- Kootenai County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Idaho community of Algoma [Kootenai County].
- Mississippi
- Ontario
- Oregon
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Curious and Interesting Names Near Algoma ...
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.
- Airpoint
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north) - Arsenic Mine ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arsenic Mine have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arsenic Mine
- Arsenic Mine is located in Floyd County
- Copper Hill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Copper Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Copper Hill
- Copper Hill is located in Floyd County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Copper Hill <5>
- Crockett Spring ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crockett Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crockett Spring
- Crockett Spring is located in Montgomery County
- Cross Roads
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cross Roads have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Roads
- Cross Roads is located in Franklin County
- Hay Run
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast) - Helm
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east) - Hemlock
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Holly Ridge
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Ridge
- Holly Ridge is located in Roanoke County
- Huffville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west) - Kings Forest
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kings Forest have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings Forest
- Kings Forest is located in Roanoke County
- Terrys Fork
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Terrys Fork
- Terrys Fork is located in Floyd County
How Far From Algoma 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 Algoma to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Algoma and extending to:
- Rocky Mount, which is the Seat of Franklin County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<2> to the east southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Algoma to Rocky Mount, with an average speed<6> 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.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 149 miles [239.8 km] to the east northeast (ENE). 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 209 miles [336.4 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 9 days and walking would take 12 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,107 miles [9,828.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,811 miles [10,961.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,688 miles [7,544.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Algoma. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Franklin County: www.franklincountyva.org/
The official website for State of Virginia: https://www.virginia.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Algoma, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Algoma) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Algoma. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.0550, Longitude: -80.0873 |
| <3> | 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 Algoma 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. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Algoma to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 309.763 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.296 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.633 degrees. |