Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in West Portal, we use the following websites to find information relevant to West Portal and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for West Portal
- 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 West Portal:
- 37.737500, -122.472778
- 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 West Portal
- 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 San Francisco County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for San Francisco County
- Since West Portal is near San Mateo County and also Marin County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for San Mateo County
- eBird sighting report for Marin 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 West Portal ...
We found two communities that share the name West Portal.
Within California, the name West Portal is unique.
Beyond California, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- New Jersey
- Hunterdon County
- This West Portal is located in Hunterdon County and lies 2,515 miles [4,047.5 km]<1> to the east northeast of the West Portal that is located in San Francisco County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hunterdon County community of West Portal.
- Utah
- Utah County
- This West Portal is located in Utah County and lies 624 miles [1,004.2 km]<1> to the east northeast of the West Portal that is located in San Francisco County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Utah County community of West Portal.
- New Jersey
Curious and Interesting Names Near West Portal ...
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.
- Diamond Heights
(Less than 2 miles to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Diamond Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Diamond Heights
- Diamond Heights is located in San Francisco County
- Forest Knolls
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forest Knolls have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Knolls
- Forest Knolls is located in San Francisco County
- Friendship Village
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Friendship Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friendship Village
- Friendship Village is located in San Francisco County
- Gold Mine Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gold Mine Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gold Mine Hill
- Gold Mine Hill is located in San Francisco County
- Little Osaka
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Little Osaka have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Osaka
- Little Osaka is located in San Francisco County
- Marcus Garvey Square
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marcus Garvey Square have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marcus Garvey Square
- Marcus Garvey Square is located in San Francisco County
- Mission District
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mission District have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mission District
- Mission District is located in San Francisco County
- Oceanview
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast) - Opera Plaza
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Opera Plaza have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Opera Plaza
- Opera Plaza is located in San Francisco County
- Silver Terrace
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Terrace have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Terrace
- Silver Terrace is located in San Francisco County
- Stonestown
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stonestown
- Stonestown is located in San Francisco County
- Village Square
(Less than 2 miles to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Village Square have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Village Square
- Village Square is located in San Francisco County
How Far From West Portal 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 West Portal to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in West Portal and extending to:
- San Francisco, which is the Seat of San Francisco County, lies just to the Northeast.
- Sacramento, which is the State Capital of California, lies 79 miles [127.1 km]<1> to the northeast (NE). If you could drive a straight line from West Portal to Sacramento, with an average speed<3>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 5 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of three days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,437 miles [3,922 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take 5 days, a buggy would take 96 days and walking would take 139 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,418 miles [11,938.1 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 8,185 miles [13,172.5 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,241 miles [10,043.9 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Portal. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- West Portal) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Portal. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.7375, Longitude: -122.4728 In this case, the coordinates for West Portal have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 West Portal 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 340.245 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 341.204 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 328.199 degrees. |