Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Mena, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Mena and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Mena
- 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 Mena:
- 34.5848, -94.239696
- 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 Mena
- 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 Polk County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Polk County
- Since Mena is near Scott County and also Le Flore County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Scott County
- eBird sighting report for Le Flore 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 Mena ...
We found one communities that share the name Mena.
Within Arkansas, the name Mena is unique.
Beyond Arkansas, there is another community also named Mena in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Mena ...
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.
- Acorn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast) - Board Camp
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Board Camp have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Board Camp
- Board Camp is located in Polk County
- Center Point
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Center Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center Point
- Center Point is located in Polk County
- Ink
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east) - Olivers Chapel
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Olivers Chapel have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Olivers Chapel
- Olivers Chapel is located in Polk County
- Potter
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter
- Potter is located in Polk County
- Potter Junction
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potter Junction
- Potter Junction is located in Polk County
- Rocky
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Shady Grove
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shady Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Grove
- Shady Grove is located in Polk County
- Two Mile ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
How Far From Mena 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 city such as Mena to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Mena and extending to:
- Little Rock, which is the State Capital of Arkansas, lies 112 miles [180.2 km]<3> to the east (E). If you could drive a straight line from Mena to Little Rock, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take about two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 7 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 5 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 995 miles [1,601.3 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 39 days and walking would take 57 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,794 miles [10,933.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,527 miles [12,113.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,405 miles [8,698.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Mena: www.cityofmena.org/
The official website for State of Arkansas: https://portal.arkansas.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Mena, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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> | 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- Mena) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Mena. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.5848, Longitude: -94.2397 |
| <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 Mena 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 318.448 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 314.97 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 313.273 degrees. |