Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Valier, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Valier and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Valier
- 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 Valier:
- 38.017565, -89.043865
- 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 Valier
- 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 Franklin County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Franklin County
- Since Valier is near Jefferson County and also Perry County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson County
- eBird sighting report for Perry 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 Valier ...
We found two communities that share the name Valier.
Within Illinois, the name Valier is unique.
Beyond Illinois, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Montana
- Pennsylvania
Curious and Interesting Names Near Valier ...
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.
- Bush
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south) - Christopher
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Christopher have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Christopher
- Christopher is located in Franklin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,686 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Christopher <3>
- Dowell
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Dowell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Dowell
- Dowell is located in Jackson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 385 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Dowell <3>
- Elkville
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elkville
- Elkville is located in Jackson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 864 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elkville <3>
- Freeman Spur
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Freeman Spur
- Freeman Spur is located in Williamson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 276 people
- Freeman Spur has also been known as:
- Freeman Spur village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Freeman Spur <3>
- Hickory Corners
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hickory Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Corners
- Hickory Corners is located in Franklin County
- Jenkins
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast) - Lake Creek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lake Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake Creek
- Lake Creek is located in Franklin County
- Mitchell
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Plumfield
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plumfield
- Plumfield is located in Franklin County
- Smothersville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Smothersville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Smothersville
- Smothersville is located in Franklin County
- Steel City
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Steel City
- Steel City is located in Franklin County
How Far From Valier 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 village such as Valier to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Valier and extending to:
- Benton, which is the Seat of Franklin County, lies just to the East.
- Springfield, which is the State Capital of Illinois, lies 126 miles [202.8 km]<1> to the north northwest (NNW). If you could drive a straight line from Valier to Springfield, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 8 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 5 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 651 miles [1,047.7 km] to the east (E). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 26 days and walking would take 37 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,423 miles [10,336.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,154 miles [11,513.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,032 miles [8,098.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Valier. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Valier) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Valier. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.0176, Longitude: -89.0439 In this case, the coordinates for Valier 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'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 Valier 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 315.298 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 311.779 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.254 degrees. |