Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Lightwood, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Lightwood and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Lightwood
- 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 Lightwood:
- 32.711940, -86.389860
- 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 Lightwood
- 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 Lightwood is near Autauga County and also Coosa County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Autauga County
- eBird sighting report for Coosa 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 Lightwood ...
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.
- Cold Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cold Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cold Springs
- Cold Springs is located in Elmore County
- Cooper
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest) - Houses Ferry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Houses Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houses Ferry
- Houses Ferry is located in Chilton County
- Kellys Crossroads
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- 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
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- 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
- Mountain Creek
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Creek
- Mountain Creek is located in Chilton County
- Nobles Ferry
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nobles Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nobles Ferry
- Nobles Ferry is located in Elmore County
- Oak Grove
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest) - Pine Level
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Level
- Pine Level is located in Autauga County
- Richville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast) - Riddle
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast) - Speed
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast) - Stoney Point
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stoney Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoney Point
- Stoney Point is located in Autauga County
- Travelers Rest
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)- 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 Lightwood 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 community such as Lightwood to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Lightwood and extending to:
- Wetumpka, which is the Seat of Elmore County, lies 15 miles [24.1 km]<2> to the southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Lightwood to Wetumpka, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 23 miles [37 km] to the south southeast (SSE). The buggy would take most of a day and walking would take just about two full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 675 miles [1,086.3 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, 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 6,572 miles [10,576.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,277 miles [11,711.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,154 miles [8,294.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Lightwood. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Elmore County: www.elmoreco.org/
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- Lightwood) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Lightwood. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.7119, Longitude: -86.3899 In this case, the coordinates for Lightwood 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 Lightwood 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 313.379 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 308.832 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.303 degrees. |