Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

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

• 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 Rapids City:
  • 41.579132, -90.339455
  • 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 Rapids City

• 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 Rock Island County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
  • eBird sighting report for Rock Island County
  • Since Rapids City is near Scott County and also Henry County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
  • eBird sighting report for Scott County
  • eBird sighting report for Henry 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 Rapids City ...

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.

• Carbon Cliff
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Carbon Cliff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carbon Cliff
  • Carbon Cliff is located in Rock Island County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,932 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Carbon Cliff <2>
• Cedar Brook
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar Brook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Brook
  • Cedar Brook is located in Rock Island County
• Great Oaks
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Great Oaks have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Oaks
  • Great Oaks is located in Scott County (IA)
• Green River
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green River have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green River
  • Green River is located in Henry County
• Green Rock
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Rock
  • Green Rock is located in Henry County
• Hickory Hills
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hickory Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Hills
  • Hickory Hills is located in Henry County
• Panorama Park
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Panorama Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Panorama Park
  • Panorama Park is located in Scott County (IA)
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 331 people
• Shady Beach
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shady Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Beach
  • Shady Beach is located in Henry County

How Far From Rapids City 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 village such as Rapids City to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

• Rock Island, which is the Seat of Rock Island County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<3> to the west southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Rapids City to Rock Island, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
• Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 129 miles [207.6 km] to the south southeast (SSE). 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 724 miles [1,165.2 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just about two full days, a buggy would take 29 days and walking would take 42 days.
• The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,295 miles [10,130.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
• The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,038 miles [11,326.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
• The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,926 miles [7,927.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>

Off-the-Road Links ...

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rapids City. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Rock Island County: www.co.rock-island.il.us/

The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov