Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Petaluma, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Petaluma and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Petaluma
- 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 Petaluma:
- 30.716856, -88.274451
- 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 Petaluma
- 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 Mobile County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Mobile County
- Since Petaluma is near George County and also Jackson County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for George County
- eBird sighting report for Jackson 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 Petaluma ...
We found one communities that share the name Petaluma.
Within Alabama, the name Petaluma is unique.
Beyond Alabama, there is another community also named Petaluma in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Petaluma ...
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.
- Deerwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east) - Indian Hills
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Hills
- Indian Hills is located in Mobile County
- Indian Springs
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs
- Indian Springs is located in Mobile County
- Orchard
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east) - Park Forest
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Park Forest have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Park Forest
- Park Forest is located in Mobile County
- Pine Run
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast) - Ponderosa
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast) - Scenic Hills
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scenic Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scenic Hills
- Scenic Hills is located in Mobile County
- Seven Hills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Seven Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Hills
- Seven Hills is located in Mobile County
- Sugar Creek
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sugar Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sugar Creek
- Sugar Creek is located in Mobile County
- Tanner Williams
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tanner Williams have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tanner Williams
- Tanner Williams is located in Mobile County
- Timbers
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
How Far From Petaluma 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 Petaluma to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Petaluma and extending to:
- Mobile, which is the Seat of Mobile County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the east. If you could walk a straight line from Petaluma to Mobile, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours 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 163 miles [262.3 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 850 miles [1,367.9 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 34 days and walking would take 49 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,748 miles [10,859.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,450 miles [11,989.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,328 miles [8,574.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Petaluma. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Mobile County: www.mobilecounty.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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Petaluma) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Petaluma. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.7169, Longitude: -88.2745 In this case, the coordinates for Petaluma 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 Petaluma 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 314.332 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.664 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.41 degrees. |