Outdoor Activities ...

As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).

When in Storm Lake, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Storm Lake and the surrounding area.

• Weather ...
  • Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
  • The National Weather Service forecast for Storm Lake

• 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 Storm Lake:
  • 42.643331, -95.200875
  • 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 Storm Lake

• 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 Buena Vista County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
  • eBird sighting report for Buena Vista County
  • Since Storm Lake is near Sac County and also Cherokee County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
  • eBird sighting report for Sac County
  • eBird sighting report for Cherokee 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 Storm Lake ...

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.

• Arthur
  (22 miles [35.4 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arthur have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arthur
  • Arthur is located in Ida County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 194 people
• Casino Beach
  (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Casino Beach
  • Casino Beach is located in Buena Vista County
• Cherokee
  (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cherokee have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherokee
  • Cherokee is located in Cherokee County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,841 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cherokee <2>
• Early
  (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Early
  • Early is located in Sac County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 507 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Early <2>
• Marathon
  (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marathon
  • Marathon is located in Buena Vista County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 228 people
• Rembrandt
  (12 miles [19.3 km] to the north)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rembrandt
  • Rembrandt is located in Buena Vista County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 195 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rembrandt <2>
• Sac City
  (18 miles [29 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sac City
  • Sac City is located in Sac County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,036 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sac City <2>
• Sulphur Springs
  (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sulphur Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sulphur Springs
  • Sulphur Springs is located in Buena Vista County

How Far From Storm Lake 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 Storm Lake to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Storm Lake and extending to:

• Des Moines, which is the State Capital of Iowa, lies 108 miles [173.8 km]<3> to the southeast (SE). If you could drive a straight line from Storm Lake to Des Moines, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take about two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 7 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 5 days.
• The White House (Washington, DC) is 982 miles [1,580.4 km] to the east (E). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 39 days and walking would take 56 days.
• The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,407 miles [10,311.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
• The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,161 miles [11,524.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
• The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,065 miles [8,151.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>

Off-the-Road Links ...

The official website for Storm Lake: www.stormlake.org/

The official website for Buena Vista County: www.co.buena-vista.ia.us/

The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/