Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Von Dale, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Von Dale and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Von Dale
- 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 Von Dale:
- 33.615659, -86.710545
- 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 Von Dale
- 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 Jefferson County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson County
- Since Von Dale is near Blount County and also Saint Clair County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Blount County
- eBird sighting report for Saint Clair 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 Von Dale ...
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.
- Airport Highlands
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Airport Highlands have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Airport Highlands
- Airport Highlands is located in Jefferson County
- Arrowhead
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast) - Center Point
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
- Center Point is located in Jefferson County
- Estimated population in 2015: 16,655 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Center Point <2>
- Chalkville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chalkville
- Chalkville is located in Jefferson County
- Dale ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east) - Danville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Gate City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south) - Kingsway Terrace
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingsway Terrace have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsway Terrace
- Kingsway Terrace is located in Jefferson County
- Larkwood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north) - Liberty Highlands
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Liberty Highlands have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Liberty Highlands
- Liberty Highlands is located in Jefferson County
- Mountain Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mountain Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain Park
- Mountain Park is located in Jefferson County
- Plain View
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plain View have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plain View
- Plain View is located in Jefferson County
- Continue List (4 more) ...
- Spring Garden
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spring Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Garden
- Spring Garden is located in Jefferson County
- Sun Valley
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sun Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun Valley
- Sun Valley is located in Jefferson County
- Trotwood Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trotwood Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trotwood Park
- Trotwood Park is located in Jefferson County
- Zion City
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
- Spring Garden
How Far From Von Dale 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 Von Dale to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Von Dale and extending to:
- Birmingham, which is the Seat of Jefferson County, lies just to the Southwest.
- Montgomery, which is the State Capital of Alabama, lies 88 miles [141.6 km]<3> to the south southeast (SSE). If you could drive a straight line from Von Dale to Montgomery, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 5 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of three days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 649 miles [1,044.5 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 26 days and walking would take 37 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,543 miles [10,529.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,252 miles [11,671 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,128 miles [8,252.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Von Dale. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Jefferson County: www.jeffcointouch.com/
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> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Von Dale) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Von Dale. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.6157, Longitude: -86.7105 In this case, the coordinates for Von Dale 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 Von Dale 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 313.627 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.244 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.239 degrees. |