Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Mackay, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Mackay and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Mackay
- 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 Mackay:
- 43.911784, -113.612040
- 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 Mackay
- 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 Custer County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Custer County
- Since Mackay is near Butte County, we have provided a link to its eBird sighting report:
- eBird sighting report for Butte 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 Mackay ...
We found three communities that share the name Mackay.
Within Idaho, the name Mackay is unique.
Beyond Idaho, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these two communities, one is located in the United States and the other in Canada.
In addition to the above occurrences of Mackay, we know of another community located outside of the United States and Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alberta
- This Mackay lies 678 miles [1,091.1 km]<1> to the north of the Mackay that is located in Custer County.
- Texas
- Alberta
- Communities Beyond North America ...
- Australia
- Distance: 7,563 miles [12,171.5 km]<1> to the west
- Australia
Curious and Interesting Names Near Mackay ...
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.
- Antelope ‑ Historic
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the south) - Chilly
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the northwest) - Cliff ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest) - Clyde
(23 miles [37 km] to the northeast) - Dickey
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the northwest) - Era
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the south) - Grouse
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south) - Leslie
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast) - Lost River
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lost River have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost River
- Lost River is located in Custer County
- Population from the 2010 Census: 68 people
How Far From Mackay 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 Mackay to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Mackay and extending to:
- Challis, which is the Seat of Custer County, lies 51 miles [82.1 km]<1> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Mackay to Challis, with an average speed<3> 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 most of two days.
- Boise City, which is the State Capital of Idaho, lies 130 miles [209.2 km] to the west (W). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,909 miles [3,072.2 km] to the east (E). Driving would take three full days, a buggy would take 75 days and walking would take 109 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,845 miles [11,016 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,614 miles [12,253.5 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,628 miles [9,057.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Mackay. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Custer County: www.co.custer.id.us/
The official website for State of Idaho: www.state.id.us/
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 drawn from Point A (ie- Mackay) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Mackay. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.9118, Longitude: -113.6120 In this case, the coordinates for Mackay have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 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. |
| <4> | 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 Mackay to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 333.549 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 333.656 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 322.534 degrees. |