Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Shafter, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Shafter and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Shafter
- 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 Shafter:
- 35.502720, -119.276551
- 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 Shafter
- 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 Kern County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Kern County
- Since Shafter is near Tulare County, we have provided a link to its eBird sighting report:
- eBird sighting report for Tulare 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 Shafter ...
We found six communities that share the name Shafter.
There is one other community in California which is also named Shafter.
Beyond California, we know of another five communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Located In California ...
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Missouri
- Nevada
- Texas
Curious and Interesting Names Near Shafter ...
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.
- Buttonwillow
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Buttonwillow
- Buttonwillow is located in Kern County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Buttonwillow <3>
- Elmo
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the north) - Fruitvale
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast) - Greenacres
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenacres
- Greenacres is located in Kern County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenacres <3>
- Hights Corner
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hights Corner have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hights Corner
- Hights Corner is located in Kern County
- Kilowatt
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest) - Leonards ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest) - Mexican Colony
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mexican Colony have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mexican Colony
- Mexican Colony is located in Kern County
- Minter Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Minter Village have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minter Village
- Minter Village is located in Kern County
- Oil Junction
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oil Junction
- Oil Junction is located in Kern County
- Rosedale ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast) - Strand ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
How Far From Shafter 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 Shafter to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Shafter and extending to:
- Bakersfield, which is the Seat of Kern County, lies 16 miles [25.7 km]<1> to the southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Shafter to Bakersfield, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take five to six hours.
- Sacramento, which is the State Capital of California, lies 244 miles [392.7 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take nearly four hours, a buggy would take 10 days and walking would take 14 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,314 miles [3,724 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 91 days and walking would take 132 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,498 miles [12,066.9 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,267 miles [13,304.4 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,275 miles [10,098.6 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Shafter: www.shafter.com/
The official website for Kern County: www.co.kern.ca.us/
The official website for State of California: https://www.ca.gov/
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- Shafter) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Shafter. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 35.5027, Longitude: -119.2766 |
| <2> | 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 Shafter, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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. |
| <6> | 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 Shafter to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 337.297 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 337.519 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 326.254 degrees. |