RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Alabama >> Pike County >> Pronto >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).

When in Pronto, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Pronto and the surrounding area.

  • 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 Pronto:
    • 31.755996, -85.818090
    • 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.
    • Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Pronto
  • 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 Pike County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Pike County
    • Since Pronto is near Bullock County and also Coffee County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Bullock County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Coffee 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:
    • Open the Waymark.com report for Pronto

Communities Also Named Pronto ...

We found two communities that are also named Pronto.

Within Alabama, the name Pronto is unique.

Beyond Alabama, we know of two communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Nevada
      • Humboldt County
      • This Pronto is located in Humboldt County and lies 1,889 miles [3,040.1 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Pronto that is located in Pike County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Humboldt County community of Pronto.
    • New Mexico
      • Dona Ana County
      • This Pronto is located in Dona Ana County and lies 1,243 miles [2,000.4 km]<1> to the west of the Pronto that is located in Pike County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dona Ana County community of Pronto.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Pronto ...

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.

  • College Park
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the west)
    • College Park is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for College Park
  • Elmhill Plantation
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Elmhill Plantation is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elmhill Plantation
  • Forest Circle
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Forest Circle is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Circle
  • Green Oaks
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Green Oaks is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Oaks
  • Green Ridge
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Green Ridge is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Ridge
  • Hillcrest
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Hillcrest is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest
  • Jonesville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Jonesville is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jonesville
  • Josie
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
    • Josie is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Josie
  • Lewis
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Lewis is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lewis
  • Mossy Grove
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Mossy Grove is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mossy Grove
  • Mountainbrook
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
    • Mountainbrook is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountainbrook
  • Pleasant Hill
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Pleasant Hill is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
  • Trojan Terrace
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Trojan Terrace is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trojan Terrace
  • Windmill Hills
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Windmill Hills is located in Pike County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windmill Hills

How Far From Pronto to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Pronto to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Pronto and extending to:

  • Troy, which is the Seat of Pike County, lies 9 miles [14.5 km]<1> to the west northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Pronto to Troy, with an average speed<2> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
  • Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 51 miles [82.1 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take most of two days and walking would take most of three days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 697 miles [1,121.7 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 28 days and walking would take 40 days.
  • The shortest distance<3> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,593 miles [10,610.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<4>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,292 miles [11,735.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,172 miles [8,323.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Pronto) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>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.
<3>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 Pronto to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Pronto. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.7560, Longitude: -85.8181       In this case, the coordinates for Pronto have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<4>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 312.977 degrees.
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 308.236 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.282 degrees.