Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Arcata, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Arcata and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Arcata
- 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 Arcata:
- 40.869986, -124.083080
- 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 Arcata
- 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 Humboldt County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Humboldt County
- Since Arcata is near Trinity County, we have provided a link to its eBird sighting report:
- eBird sighting report for Trinity 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 Arcata ...
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.
- Alliance
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alliance
- Alliance is located in Humboldt County
- Clam Beach
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clam Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clam Beach
- Clam Beach is located in Humboldt County
- Cutten
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cutten
- Cutten is located in Humboldt County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cutten <2>
- Eureka
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eureka
- Eureka is located in Humboldt County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 26,652 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eureka <2>
- Fairhaven
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest) - Fickle Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fickle Hill
- Fickle Hill is located in Humboldt County
- Fieldbrook
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fieldbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fieldbrook
- Fieldbrook is located in Humboldt County
- Fisher
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Freshwater
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freshwater
- Freshwater is located in Humboldt County
- Freshwater Corners
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freshwater Corners
- Freshwater Corners is located in Humboldt County
- Kneeland
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kneeland
- Kneeland is located in Humboldt County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kneeland <2>
- Manila
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west) - Rosewood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
How Far From Arcata 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 city such as Arcata to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Arcata and extending to:
- Eureka, which is the Seat of Humboldt County, lies just to the Southwest.
- Sacramento, which is the State Capital of California, lies 209 miles [336.4 km]<3> to the southeast (SE). If you could drive a straight line from Arcata to Sacramento, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take a little over three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 12 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 9 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,466 miles [3,968.6 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 97 days and walking would take 141 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,242 miles [11,654.9 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,005 miles [12,882.8 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,101 miles [9,818.6 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Arcata: www.arcatacityhall.org/
The official website for Humboldt County: www.co.humboldt.ca.us/
The official website for State of California: https://www.ca.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 '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- Arcata) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Arcata. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.8700, Longitude: -124.0831 |
| <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 Arcata 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 341.902 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 343.327 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 329.19 degrees. |