Curious and Interesting Names Near Ben-My-Chree ...
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.
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 Ben-My-Chree to various places of note, such as Parliament Hill.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<1> beginning in Ben-My-Chree and extending to:
Victoria, which is the Provincial Capital of British Columbia, lies 880 miles [1,416.2 km]<1> to the southeast (SE). If you could drive a straight line from Ben-My-Chree to Victoria, with an average speed<2>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take most of two days to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 50 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 35 days.
The National Capital at Parliament Hill (Ottawa, ON) is 2,556 miles [4,113.5 km] to the east (E). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 100 days and walking would take 146 days.
The shortest distance<3> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,104 miles [9,823.4 km] and it lies to the north (N).<4>
The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,837 miles [11,003.1 km] and it lies to the north (N).<5>
The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,183 miles [8,341.2 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>'
Footnotes ...
<1>
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 from Point A (ie- Ben-My-Chree) 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 Ben-My-Chree 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 Ben-My-Chree. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 59.4167, Longitude: -134.4667
<4>
The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 351.256 degrees.
<5>
The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 354.622 degrees.
<6>
The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 335.138 degrees.