Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Rapidan, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Rapidan and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Rapidan
- 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 Rapidan:
- 30.070756, -90.890930
- 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 Rapidan
- 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 parish-by-parish basis. We have selected Saint James Parish as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Saint James Parish
- Since Rapidan is near Ascension Parish and also Assumption Parish, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Ascension Parish
- eBird sighting report for Assumption Parish
- 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 Rapidan ...
We found two communities that share the name Rapidan.
Within Louisiana, the name Rapidan is unique.
Beyond Louisiana, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Minnesota
- Virginia
Curious and Interesting Names Near Rapidan ...
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.
- Central
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast) - Chatman Town
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chatman Town have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chatman Town
- Chatman Town is located in Saint James Parish
- Convent
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Convent
- Convent is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Convent <3>
- Free Town
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast) - Hillaryville
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hillaryville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillaryville
- Hillaryville is located in Ascension Parish
- Minnie ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest) - Romeville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east) - Uncle Sam
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Uncle Sam have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Uncle Sam
- Uncle Sam is located in Saint James Parish
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Uncle Sam <3>
- Union
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest) - Welcome
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)
How Far From Rapidan to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Rapidan to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Rapidan and extending to:
- Convent, which is the Seat of Saint James Parish, lies just to the Southeast.
- Baton Rouge, which is the State Capital of Louisiana, lies 30 miles [48.3 km]<1> to the north northwest (NNW). If you could walk a straight line from Rapidan to Baton Rouge, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of two days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take just over a day.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 994 miles [1,599.7 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take most of two days, a buggy would take 39 days and walking would take 57 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,889 miles [11,086.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,597 miles [12,226.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,474 miles [8,809.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rapidan. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Saint James Parish: www.stjamesla.com/
The official website for State of Louisiana: louisiana.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Rapidan) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Rapidan. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.0708, Longitude: -90.8909 In this case, the coordinates for Rapidan 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 Rapidan 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 315.832 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 311.323 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 312.519 degrees. |