Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Virginia Shores, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Virginia Shores and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Virginia Shores
- 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 Virginia Shores:
- 34.793699, -87.546693
- 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 Virginia Shores
- 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 Colbert County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Colbert County
- Since Virginia Shores is near Lauderdale County and also Lawrence County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Lauderdale County
- eBird sighting report for Lawrence 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 Virginia Shores ...
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.
- Aqua Vista
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Aqua Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Aqua Vista
- Aqua Vista is located in Lauderdale County
- Emerald Shores
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Emerald Shores have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerald Shores
- Emerald Shores is located in Lauderdale County
- Ford City
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast) - Hideaway Hills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hideaway Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hideaway Hills
- Hideaway Hills is located in Lauderdale County
- Indian Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Springs
- Indian Springs is located in Lauderdale County
- Kingman ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Lake Coves
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Coves have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Coves
- Lake Coves is located in Lauderdale County
- Lakeview
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west) - Lakeview Heights
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Heights
- Lakeview Heights is located in Lauderdale County
- Lakeview Highlands
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lakeview Highlands have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lakeview Highlands
- Lakeview Highlands is located in Colbert County
- Listerhill
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Listerhill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Listerhill
- Listerhill is located in Colbert County
- Lock Six
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Continue List (6 more) ...
- Lockland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest) - Mount Pleasant ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Pleasant have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Mount Pleasant is located in Colbert County
- Paradise Points
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Paradise Points have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Paradise Points
- Paradise Points is located in Colbert County
- Sky Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Village Pines
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Village Pines have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village Pines
- Village Pines is located in Lauderdale County
- Woodlawn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Lockland
How Far From Virginia Shores 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 Virginia Shores to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Virginia Shores and extending to:
- Tuscumbia, which is the Seat of Colbert County, lies 9 miles [14.5 km]<2> to the west southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Virginia Shores to Tuscumbia, with an average speed<3> 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 181 miles [291.3 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 11 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 645 miles [1,038 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 26 days and walking would take 37 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,521 miles [10,494.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,237 miles [11,646.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,112 miles [8,227 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Virginia Shores. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Colbert County: www.colbertcounty.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 drawn from Point A (ie- Virginia Shores) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Virginia Shores. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.7937, Longitude: -87.5467 In this case, the coordinates for Virginia Shores 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 Virginia Shores 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 314.204 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 310.073 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.327 degrees. |