Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Beacon, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Beacon and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Beacon
- 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 Beacon:
- 41.276404, -92.681569
- 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 Beacon
- 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 Mahaska County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Mahaska County
- Since Beacon is near Monroe County and also Wapello County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Monroe County
- eBird sighting report for Wapello 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 Beacon ...
We found five communities that share the name Beacon.
Within Iowa, the name Beacon is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another five communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Michigan
- New York
- Tennessee
- Texas
Curious and Interesting Names Near Beacon ...
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.
- Bluff Creek
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bluff Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff Creek
- Bluff Creek is located in Monroe County
- Bolton
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Cedar
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar
- Cedar is located in Mahaska County
- Cricket
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest) - Evans
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Evans
- Evans is located in Mahaska County
- Fishville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest) - Frederic
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south) - Harvey
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the west) - Lacey
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lacey
- Lacey is located in Mahaska County
- Pleasant Corner
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Corner have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Corner
- Pleasant Corner is located in Monroe County
- Rose Hill
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rose Hill
- Rose Hill is located in Mahaska County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 161 people
- University Park
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for University Park
- University Park is located in Mahaska County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 468 people
How Far From Beacon 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 Beacon to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Beacon and extending to:
- Oskaloosa, which is the Seat of Mahaska County, lies just to the Northeast.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 53 miles [85.3 km]<1> to the west northwest (WNW). If you could walk a straight line from Beacon to Des Moines, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of three days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take over two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 841 miles [1,353.5 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 33 days and walking would take 48 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,393 miles [10,288.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,139 miles [11,489.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,031 miles [8,096.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Beacon. 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 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Beacon) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Beacon. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.2764, Longitude: -92.6816 |
| <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> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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 Beacon to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 317.83 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.133 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.252 degrees. |