Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Oak Bluffs, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Oak Bluffs and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Oak Bluffs
- 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 Oak Bluffs:
- 41.455968, -70.562015
- 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 Oak Bluffs
- 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 Dukes County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Dukes County
- Since Oak Bluffs is near Barnstable County and also Plymouth County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Barnstable County
- eBird sighting report for Plymouth 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 Oak Bluffs ...
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.
- Christian Town
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Christian Town have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Christian Town
- Christian Town is located in Dukes County
- Edgartown
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgartown
- Edgartown is located in Dukes County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,383 people
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Edgartown
- From Oak Bluffs to Edgartown
- Harthaven
(Less than 2 miles to the south) - Hartsville
(Less than 2 miles to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hartsville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartsville
- Hartsville is located in Dukes County
- Kingdom Hall
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kingdom Hall have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingdom Hall
- Kingdom Hall is located in Barnstable County
- Longview
(5 miles [8 km] to the west) - Nabs Corner
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nabs Corner have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nabs Corner
- Nabs Corner is located in Dukes County
- Rock Landing
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rock Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rock Landing
- Rock Landing is located in Barnstable County
- Teaticket
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north) - Vineyard Haven
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineyard Haven
- Vineyard Haven is located in Dukes County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Vineyard Haven
- From Oak Bluffs to Vineyard Haven
- Vineyard Highlands
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vineyard Highlands have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineyard Highlands
- Vineyard Highlands is located in Dukes County
- Woods Hole
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods Hole
- Woods Hole is located in Barnstable County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Woods Hole
- From Oak Bluffs to Woods Hole
How Far From Oak Bluffs 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 community such as Oak Bluffs to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Oak Bluffs and extending to:
- Edgartown, which is the Seat of Dukes County, lies just to the South Southeast.
- Boston, which is the State Capital of Massachusetts, lies 67 miles [107.8 km]<2> to the north northwest (NNW). If you could walk a straight line from Oak Bluffs to Boston, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take three full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 384 miles [618 km] to the west southwest (WSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take most of a day, a buggy would take 15 days and walking would take 22 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,517 miles [8,878.8 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,219 miles [10,008.5 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,097 miles [6,593.5 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Oak Bluffs: www.ci.oak-bluffs.ma.us/
The official website for Dukes County: www.dukescounty.org/
The official website for State of Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Oak Bluffs) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Oak Bluffs. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.4560, Longitude: -70.5620 |
| <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 Oak Bluffs 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 303.815 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 299.238 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 300.813 degrees. |