Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Jamaica, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Jamaica and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Jamaica
- 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 Jamaica:
- 41.846995, -94.306644
- 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 Jamaica
- 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 Guthrie County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Guthrie County
- Since Jamaica is near Dallas County and also Greene County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Dallas County
- eBird sighting report for Greene 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 Jamaica ...
We found six communities that share the name Jamaica.
Within Iowa, the name Jamaica is unique.
Beyond Iowa, we know of another six communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Nebraska
- New York
- Vermont
- Virginia
Curious and Interesting Names Near Jamaica ...
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.
- Beaver
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast) - Coon Rapids
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coon Rapids have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coon Rapids
- Coon Rapids is located in Carroll County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,221 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Coon Rapids <3>
- Cooper
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Dale
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dale
- Dale is located in Guthrie County
- Dana
(18 miles [29 km] to the north) - Grand Junction
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Junction
- Grand Junction is located in Greene County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 757 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Junction <3>
- Gravel Pit
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gravel Pit have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gravel Pit
- Gravel Pit is located in Greene County
- Kennedy
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast) - Panther
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast) - Perry Yard
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Perry Yard have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Perry Yard
- Perry Yard is located in Dallas County
- Redfield
(18 miles [29 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Redfield
- Redfield is located in Dallas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 832 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Redfield <3>
How Far From Jamaica to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a city such as Jamaica to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Jamaica and extending to:
- Guthrie Center, which is the Seat of Guthrie County, lies 15 miles [24.1 km]<1> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Jamaica to Guthrie Center, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day 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 39 miles [62.8 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just about two full days and walking would take over two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 929 miles [1,495.1 km] to the east (E). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 37 days and walking would take 53 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,419 miles [10,330.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,170 miles [11,539 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,068 miles [8,156.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Jamaica. 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Jamaica) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Jamaica. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.8470, Longitude: -94.3066 |
| <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're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Jamaica 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 318.971 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 316.519 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.956 degrees. |