Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Rockwest, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Rockwest and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Rockwest
- 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 Rockwest:
- 31.999884, -87.371671
- 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 Rockwest
- 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 Wilcox County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Wilcox County
- Since Rockwest is near Monroe County and also Dallas County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Monroe County
- eBird sighting report for Dallas 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 Rockwest ...
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.
- Boiling Springs
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boiling Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Springs
- Boiling Springs is located in Wilcox County
- Coal Bluff
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coal Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Bluff
- Coal Bluff is located in Wilcox County
- Dry Forks
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Holly Ferry
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Ferry
- Holly Ferry is located in Wilcox County
- Nellie
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Nellie. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nellie
- Nellie is located in Wilcox County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Nellie
- From Rockwest to Nellie
- Pebble Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pebble Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pebble Hill
- Pebble Hill is located in Wilcox County
- Prairie
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the north) - Prairie Bluff ‑ Historic
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Prairie Bluff. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<2>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prairie Bluff
- Prairie Bluff is located in Wilcox County
- Prairie Bluff has also been known as:
- Dale
- Daletown
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Prairie Bluff
- From Rockwest to Prairie Bluff
- Yellow Bluff
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Yellow Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Bluff
- Yellow Bluff is located in Wilcox County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200 people
- Yellow Bluff Ferry
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Yellow Bluff Ferry have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Yellow Bluff Ferry
- Yellow Bluff Ferry is located in Wilcox County
How Far From Rockwest 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 Rockwest to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Rockwest and extending to:
- Camden, which is the Seat of Wilcox County, lies just to the East.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 67 miles [107.8 km]<3> to the east northeast (ENE). If you could walk a straight line from Rockwest to Montgomery, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take three full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 750 miles [1,207 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 30 days and walking would take 43 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,648 miles [10,698.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,352 miles [11,831.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,230 miles [8,416.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rockwest. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
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> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <3> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Rockwest) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Rockwest. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 31.9999, Longitude: -87.3717 In this case, the coordinates for Rockwest have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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 Rockwest to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 313.91 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.349 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.829 degrees. |