RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of California >> Orange County >> Lake Forest >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).

When in Lake Forest, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Lake Forest and the surrounding area.

  • Weather ...
  • 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 Lake Forest:
    • 33.647051, -117.686030
    • 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.
    • Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Lake Forest
  • 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 Orange County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Orange County
    • Since Lake Forest is near Riverside County and also San Diego County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Riverside County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for San Diego 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:
    • Open the Waymark.com report for Lake Forest

Communities Also Named Lake Forest ...

We found 27 communities that are also named Lake Forest.

There is one other community in California that is also named Lake Forest.

Beyond California, we know of 26 communities that are located in the United States and Canada. Of these 26 communities, 26 are located in the United States and one is in Canada.

  • Communities Located In California ...
    • Placer County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Placer County and lies 405 miles [651.8 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Placer County community of Lake Forest.
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Baldwin County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Alabama community of Lake Forest [Baldwin County].
      • Tuscaloosa County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Tuscaloosa County and lies 1,731 miles [2,785.8 km]<1> to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tuscaloosa County community of Lake Forest.
    • Florida
      • Broward County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Broward County and lies 2,295 miles [3,693.4 km]<1> to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Broward County community of Lake Forest.
      • Duval County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Duval County and lies 2,109 miles [3,394.1 km] to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Duval County community of Lake Forest.
      • Hillsborough County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Hillsborough County and lies 2,114 miles [3,402.2 km] to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hillsborough County community of Lake Forest.
    • Georgia
      • Cherokee County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Cherokee County and lies 1,890 miles [3,041.7 km]<1> to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Cherokee County community of Lake Forest.
      • Gwinnett County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Gwinnett County and lies 1,920 miles [3,089.9 km] to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Gwinnett County community of Lake Forest.
      • Hall County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Hall County and lies 1,922 miles [3,093.2 km] to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hall County community of Lake Forest.
      • Oconee County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Oconee County and lies 1,956 miles [3,147.9 km] to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Oconee County community of Lake Forest.
    • Illinois
      • Lake County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Lake County and lies 1,718 miles [2,764.9 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lake County community of Lake Forest.
    • Louisiana
      • Jefferson Parish
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Louisiana community of Lake Forest [Jefferson Parish].
      • Orleans Parish
      • This Lake Forest is located in Orleans Parish and lies 1,637 miles [2,634.5 km]<1> to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Orleans Parish community of Lake Forest.
    • Manitoba
      • This Lake Forest lies 1,574 miles [2,533.1 km]<1> to the northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
    • Maryland
      • Anne Arundel County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Anne Arundel County and lies 2,295 miles [3,693.4 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Anne Arundel County community of Lake Forest.
    • Michigan
      • Antrim County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Michigan community of Lake Forest [Antrim County].
    • Mississippi
      • Warren County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Warren County and lies 1,554 miles [2,500.9 km]<1> to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Warren County community of Lake Forest.
    • New Jersey
      • Morris County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the New Jersey community of Lake Forest [Morris County].
    • North Carolina
      • Mecklenburg County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Mecklenburg County and lies 2,096 miles [3,373.2 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Mecklenburg County community of Lake Forest.
      • New Hanover County
      • This Lake Forest is located in New Hanover County and lies 2,262 miles [3,640.3 km] to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the New Hanover County community of Lake Forest.
    • South Carolina
      • Greenville County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Greenville County and lies 2,008 miles [3,231.6 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Greenville County community of Lake Forest.
      • Spartanburg County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Spartanburg County and lies 2,034 miles [3,273.4 km] to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Spartanburg County community of Lake Forest.
    • Tennessee
      • Hamilton County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Hamilton County and lies 1,914 miles [3,080.3 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hamilton County community of Lake Forest.
    • Texas
      • Harris County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Texas community of Lake Forest [Harris County].
      • Tarrant County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Tarrant County and lies 1,163 miles [1,871.7 km]<1> to the east of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tarrant County community of Lake Forest.
    • Virginia
      • Suffolk City
      • This Lake Forest is located in Suffolk City and lies 2,314 miles [3,724 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Suffolk City community of Lake Forest.
    • Wisconsin
      • Waukesha County
      • This Lake Forest is located in Waukesha County and lies 1,712 miles [2,755.2 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Lake Forest that is located in Orange County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Waukesha County community of Lake Forest.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Lake Forest ...

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.

  • Carbondale ‑ Historic
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Carbondale is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbondale
  • Crystal Cove
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
    • Crystal Cove is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Cove
  • Dove Canyon
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Dove Canyon is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dove Canyon
  • Dyer
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
    • Dyer is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dyer
  • Emerald Bay
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)
    • Emerald Bay is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Emerald Bay
  • Frances
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Frances is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frances
  • Kathryn
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
    • Kathryn is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kathryn
  • Lemon Heights
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • Lemon Heights is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lemon Heights
  • Robinson Ranch
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)
    • Robinson Ranch is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Robinson Ranch
  • Top of the World
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Top of the World is located in Orange County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Top of the World

How Far From Lake Forest to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as Lake Forest to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Lake Forest and extending to:

  • Santa Ana, which is the Seat of Orange County, lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<1> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Lake Forest to Santa Ana, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
  • Sacramento, which is the State Capital of California, lies 401 miles [645.3 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take most of a day, a buggy would take 16 days and walking would take 23 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,272 miles [3,656.4 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 89 days and walking would take 129 days.
  • The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,579 miles [12,197.2 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<5>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,348 miles [13,434.8 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,330 miles [10,187.1 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>'

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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Lake Forest) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer.

Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name.

Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time.

Also keep in mind that Lake Forest could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out.
<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 Lake Forest 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 Lake Forest. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.6471, Longitude: -117.6860    
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 335.718 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 335.481 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 325.303 degrees.