Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Shell Rock, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Shell Rock and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Shell Rock
- 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 Shell Rock:
- 42.712424, -92.581770
- 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 Shell Rock
- 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 Butler County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Butler County
- Since Shell Rock is near Bremer County and also Black Hawk County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Bremer County
- eBird sighting report for Black Hawk 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 Shell Rock ...
We found one communities that share the name Shell Rock.
Within Iowa, the name Shell Rock is unique.
Beyond Iowa, there is another community also named Shell Rock in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Kansas
- Greenwood County
- This community is historic<1> and although located in Greenwood County, we don't know where within the county.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Greenwood County community of Shell Rock.
- Kansas
Curious and Interesting Names Near Shell Rock ...
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.
- Cedar City
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar City
- Cedar City is located in Black Hawk County
- Cedar Falls
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Falls
- Cedar Falls is located in Black Hawk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 40,231 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cedar Falls <3>
- Clarksville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clarksville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clarksville
- Clarksville is located in Butler County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,333 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Clarksville <3>
- Eleanor
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the southwest) - Finchford
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Finchford
- Finchford is located in Black Hawk County
- Fredsville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fredsville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fredsville
- Fredsville is located in Grundy County
- Glasgow ‑ Historic
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast) - Janesville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Janesville
- Janesville is located in Black Hawk County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 996 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Janesville <3>
- Packard
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest) - Pilot Rock
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pilot Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Rock
- Pilot Rock is located in Butler County
- Stout
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stout
- Stout is located in Grundy County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 214 people
How Far From Shell Rock 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 Shell Rock to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<4> beginning in Shell Rock and extending to:
- Allison, which is the Seat of Butler County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<4> to the west northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Shell Rock to Allison, with an average speed<5> 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.
- Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 93 miles [149.7 km] to the southwest (SW). 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 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 852 miles [1,371.2 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 34 days and walking would take 49 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,316 miles [10,164.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,065 miles [11,370 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,962 miles [7,985.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Shell Rock. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Butler County: www.butlercoiowa.org/
The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Shell Rock, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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> | 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 drawn from Point A (ie- Shell Rock) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Shell Rock. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.7124, Longitude: -92.5818 In this case, the coordinates for Shell Rock have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <5> | 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. |
| <6> | 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 Shell Rock to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 317.796 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.285 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.856 degrees. |