Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Van Nuys, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Van Nuys and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Van Nuys
- 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 Van Nuys:
- 34.186672, -118.448671
- 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 Van Nuys
- 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 Los Angeles County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Los Angeles County
- Since Van Nuys is near Ventura County, we have provided a link to its eBird sighting report:
- eBird sighting report for Ventura 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 Van Nuys ...
We found one communities that share the name Van Nuys.
Within California, the name Van Nuys is unique.
Beyond California, there is another community also named Van Nuys in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Van Nuys ...
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.
- Crescent
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast) - Granada Hills
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Granada Hills
- Granada Hills is located in Los Angeles County
- Magnolia Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Magnolia Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Magnolia Park
- Magnolia Park is located in Los Angeles County
- Mission Hills
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mission Hills
- Mission Hills is located in Los Angeles County
- Shadow Hills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shadow Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shadow Hills
- Shadow Hills is located in Los Angeles County
- Studio City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Studio City
- Studio City is located in Los Angeles County
- Sun Valley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sun Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun Valley
- Sun Valley is located in Los Angeles County
- Universal City
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Universal City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Universal City
- Universal City is located in Los Angeles County
- Valley Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Village
- Valley Village is located in Los Angeles County
- Wahoo ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
How Far From Van Nuys 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 community such as Van Nuys to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Van Nuys and extending to:
- Los Angeles, which is the Seat of Los Angeles County, lies 15 miles [24.1 km]<1> to the southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Van Nuys to Los Angeles, with an average speed<3> 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 four to five hours.
- Sacramento, which is the State Capital of California, lies 347 miles [558.4 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take five to six hours, a buggy would take 14 days and walking would take 20 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,300 miles [3,701.5 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 90 days and walking would take 131 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,563 miles [12,171.5 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 8,332 miles [13,409.1 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,324 miles [10,177.5 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Van Nuys. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Los Angeles County: www.lacounty.info/
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 drawn from Point A (ie- Van Nuys) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Van Nuys. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.1867, Longitude: -118.4487 |
| <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> | 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 Van Nuys to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 336.429 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 336.382 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 325.752 degrees. |