Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Irma, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Irma and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Irma
- 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 Irma:
- 32.723750, -85.938105
- 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 Irma
- 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 Elmore County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Elmore County
- Since Irma is near Tallapoosa County and also Hale County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Tallapoosa County
- eBird sighting report for Hale 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 Irma ...
We found nine communities that share the name Irma.
Within Alabama, the name Irma is unique.
Beyond Alabama, we know of another nine communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these nine communities, eight are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alberta
- This Irma lies 1,873 miles [3,014.3 km]<1> to the northwest of the Irma that is located in Elmore County.
- Arkansas
- California
- Florida
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Missouri
- Wisconsin
- Alberta
Curious and Interesting Names Near Irma ...
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.
- Cherokee Bluffs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cherokee Bluffs have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherokee Bluffs
- Cherokee Bluffs is located in Tallapoosa County
- Cotton
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest) - Double Bridges Ferry
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Double Bridges Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Double Bridges Ferry
- Double Bridges Ferry is located in Tallapoosa County
- Falkner
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west) - Jordan
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west) - Red Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south) - River Bend ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for River Bend have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River Bend
- River Bend is located in Tallapoosa County
- Robinson Ferry
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Robinson Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson Ferry
- Robinson Ferry is located in Elmore County
- Rover
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north) - Union
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
How Far From Irma 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 Irma to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers and using the location of where the historic<4> community of Irma once stood, the straight-line distance beginning in Irma and extending to:
- Wetumpka, which is the Seat of Elmore County, lies 20 miles [32.2 km]<1> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Irma to Wetumpka, with an average speed<5> 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 most of a day.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 31 miles [49.9 km] to the southwest (SW). 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 655 miles [1,054.1 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 26 days and walking would take 38 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,553 miles [10,546 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,256 miles [11,677.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,134 miles [8,262.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Elmore County: www.elmoreco.org/
The official website for State of Alabama: https://www.alabama.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Irma) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Irma. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.7238, Longitude: -85.9381 |
| <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 Irma 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> | 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 Irma, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 Irma 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 313.112 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 308.525 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.125 degrees. |