Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Ackley, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Ackley and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Ackley
- 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 Ackley:
- 42.552203, -93.051484
- 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 Ackley
- 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 Hardin County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Hardin County
- Since Ackley is near Franklin County and also Butler County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Franklin County
- eBird sighting report for Butler 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 Ackley ...
We found four communities that share the name Ackley.
Within Iowa, the name Ackley is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another four communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Kansas
- Michigan
- Ohio
- Washington
Curious and Interesting Names Near Ackley ...
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.
- Berlin
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest) - Eagle City
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle City have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle City
- Eagle City is located in Hardin County
- Eleanor
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast) - Geneva
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Geneva have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Geneva
- Geneva is located in Franklin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 154 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Geneva <5>
- Hughs
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest) - Iowa Falls
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iowa Falls have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Falls
- Iowa Falls is located in Hardin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,940 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Iowa Falls <5>
- Iowa Falls Junction
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iowa Falls Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iowa Falls Junction
- Iowa Falls Junction is located in Hardin County
- Macey
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west) - Steamboat Rock
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steamboat Rock
- Steamboat Rock is located in Hardin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 298 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Steamboat Rock <5>
How Far From Ackley 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 city such as Ackley to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Ackley and extending to:
- Eldora, which is the Seat of Hardin County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the south. If you could walk a straight line from Ackley to Eldora, with an average speed<6> 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.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 72 miles [115.9 km] to the south southwest (SSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take most of three days and walking would take 4 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 873 miles [1,405 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 35 days and walking would take 50 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,340 miles [10,203.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,090 miles [11,410.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,987 miles [8,025.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Ackley. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Ackley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Ackley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.5522, Longitude: -93.0515 |
| <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 Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird 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 Ackley 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> | 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 Ackley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Ackley to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 318.118 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.633 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.14 degrees. |