RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Florida >> Hillsborough County >> Ridgelake >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Ridgelake, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Ridgelake 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 Ridgelake:
    • 28.155000, -82.436500
    • 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 Ridgelake
  • 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 Hillsborough County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Hillsborough County
    • Since Ridgelake is near Pasco County and also Pinellas County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Pasco County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Pinellas 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 Ridgelake

Communities Also Named Ridgelake ...

We found two communities that are also named Ridgelake.

Within Florida, the name Ridgelake is unique.

Beyond Florida, we know of two communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Georgia
      • Fayette County
      • This Ridgelake is located in Fayette County and lies 384 miles [618 km]<1> to the north northwest of the Ridgelake that is located in Hillsborough County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fayette County community of Ridgelake.
    • Maryland
      • Howard 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 Maryland community of Ridgelake [Howard County].

Curious and Interesting Names Near Ridgelake ...

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.

  • Candlelight
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Candlelight is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Candlelight
  • Carr Drive
    (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
    • Carr Drive is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carr Drive
  • Coopers Bayou
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Coopers Bayou is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coopers Bayou
  • Crystal Cove
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Crystal Cove is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Cove
  • Crystal Lakes
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Crystal Lakes is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crystal Lakes
  • Cypress Cove
    (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
    • Cypress Cove is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cypress Cove
  • Deer Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Deer Park is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Park
  • Deer Run
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Deer Run is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Run
  • Eagle Crest
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Eagle Crest is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Crest
  • Edgewater
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Edgewater is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewater
  • Evergreen North
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Evergreen North is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evergreen North
  • Fox Run
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Fox Run is located in Hillsborough County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Run
  • Continue List   (23 more) ...
    • Garden Grove
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Garden Grove is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden Grove
    • Green Meadow
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Green Meadow is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Meadow
    • Holly Lane
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Holly Lane is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Lane
    • Hounds Run
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Hounds Run is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hounds Run
    • Jessies Place
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Jessies Place is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jessies Place
    • Lake Keen
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Lake Keen is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Keen
    • Live Oak
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Live Oak is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Live Oak
    • Manor Oaks
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Manor Oaks is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Manor Oaks
    • Maplehill
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Maplehill is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maplehill
    • Montana Pines
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Montana Pines is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montana Pines
    • Oak Hollow
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Oak Hollow is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Hollow
    • Pond Eddy
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Pond Eddy is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pond Eddy
    • Popes
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Popes is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Popes
    • Regalwoods
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Regalwoods is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Regalwoods
    • Rustic Oaks Place
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Rustic Oaks Place is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rustic Oaks Place
    • Suzie Trace
      (Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
      • Suzie Trace is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Suzie Trace
    • Tangerine Hill
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Tangerine Hill is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tangerine Hill
    • Tropical Lakes
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Tropical Lakes is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tropical Lakes
    • Turning Point
      (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
      • Turning Point is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Turning Point
    • Waterbridge
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Waterbridge is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterbridge
    • Wildwood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Wildwood is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wildwood
    • Willow Creek
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Willow Creek is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Creek
    • Willow Pond
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Willow Pond is located in Hillsborough County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Pond

How Far From Ridgelake 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 community such as Ridgelake to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

  • Tampa, which is the Seat of Hillsborough County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the south. If you could walk a straight line from Ridgelake to Tampa, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
  • Tallahassee, which is the State Capital of Florida, lies 192 miles [309 km] to the northwest (NW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 11 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 803 miles [1,292.3 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 32 days and walking would take 46 days.
  • The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,609 miles [10,636.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,278 miles [11,712.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,177 miles [8,331.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Ridgelake) 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 Rock Creek to see Pete ... Rock 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 Ridgelake 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 Ridgelake 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 Ridgelake. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 28.1550, Longitude: -82.4365       In this case, the coordinates for Ridgelake have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 310.833 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.258 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.842 degrees.