Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Rio Ranch, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Rio Ranch and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Rio Ranch
- 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 Rio Ranch:
- 33.523724, -84.042413
- 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 Rio Ranch
- 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 Newton County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Newton County
- Since Rio Ranch is near Henry County and also Rockdale County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Henry County
- eBird sighting report for Rockdale 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
Curious and Interesting Names Near Rio Ranch ...
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.
- Abide Awhile
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Abide Awhile have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Abide Awhile
- Abide Awhile is located in Newton County
- Blossom ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Brandy Shoals
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brandy Shoals have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brandy Shoals
- Brandy Shoals is located in Newton County
- Forest Lakes
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forest Lakes have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Lakes
- Forest Lakes is located in Newton County
- Forest Mill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forest Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Mill
- Forest Mill is located in Newton County
- Fountain Hill ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fountain Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain Hill
- Fountain Hill is located in Rockdale County
- Fox Meadows
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fox Meadows have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fox Meadows
- Fox Meadows is located in Newton County
- Hidden Shoals
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hidden Shoals have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hidden Shoals
- Hidden Shoals is located in Newton County
- Honey Creek ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Honey Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Honey Creek
- Honey Creek is located in Rockdale County
- Julia
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Leadmore
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast) - Magnet
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast) - Continue List (6 more) ...
- Plum Orchard
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plum Orchard have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum Orchard
- Plum Orchard is located in Newton County
- Riverside Park
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riverside Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riverside Park
- Riverside Park is located in Newton County
- Riverwood
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast) - Shoal Creek
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shoal Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoal Creek
- Shoal Creek is located in Newton County
- Slades Mill
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Slades Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slades Mill
- Slades Mill is located in Newton County
- Stone Creek
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stone Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stone Creek
- Stone Creek is located in Newton County
- Plum Orchard
How Far From Rio Ranch 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 Rio Ranch to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Rio Ranch and extending to:
- Covington, which is the Seat of Newton County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<2> to the east northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Rio Ranch to Covington, 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.
- Atlanta, which is the State Capital of Georgia, lies 25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest (NW). The buggy would take most of a day and walking would take just about two full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 538 miles [865.8 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take just over a day, a buggy would take 21 days and walking would take 31 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,435 miles [10,356.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,135 miles [11,482.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,014 miles [8,069.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rio Ranch. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Newton County: www.co.newton.ga.us/
The official website for State of Georgia: https://georgia.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Rio Ranch) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Rio Ranch. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.5237, Longitude: -84.0424 In this case, the coordinates for Rio Ranch have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Rio Ranch 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 312.042 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 307.402 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 309.207 degrees. |