Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Emmitsburg, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Emmitsburg and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Emmitsburg
- 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 Emmitsburg:
- 39.705098, -77.321720
- 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 Emmitsburg
- 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 Frederick County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Frederick County
- Since Emmitsburg is near Adams County and also Carroll County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Adams County
- eBird sighting report for Carroll 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 Emmitsburg ...
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.
- Blackberry Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Blackberry Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blackberry Hills
- Blackberry Hills is located in Frederick County
- Bullock
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast) - Distant View
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Distant View have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Distant View
- Distant View is located in Frederick County
- Fairplay
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast) - Fourpoints
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fourpoints have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fourpoints
- Fourpoints is located in Frederick County
- Friends Creek
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Friends Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Friends Creek
- Friends Creek is located in Frederick County
- Glass
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast) - Greenmount
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenmount
- Greenmount is located in Adams County (PA)
- Jones
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Longs ‑ Historic
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south) - Lost Valley
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lost Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lost Valley
- Lost Valley is located in Frederick County
- Shanks Mill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shanks Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shanks Mill
- Shanks Mill is located in Adams County (PA)
- Silo Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the east) - Thornbrook
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Thornbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Thornbrook
- Thornbrook is located in Frederick County
How Far From Emmitsburg 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 town such as Emmitsburg to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Emmitsburg and extending to:
- Frederick, which is the Seat of Frederick County, lies 20 miles [32.2 km]<2> to the south southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Emmitsburg to Frederick, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
- Annapolis, which is the State Capital of Maryland, lies 66 miles [106.2 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take about three full days and walking would take three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 57 miles [91.7 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving would take less than an hour, a buggy would take over two days and walking would take most of three days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,875 miles [9,454.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,584 miles [10,595.9 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,460 miles [7,177.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Emmitsburg: www.emmitsburg.net/
The official website for Frederick County: www.co.frederick.md.us/
The official website for State of Maryland: www.maryland.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 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Emmitsburg) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Emmitsburg. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.7051, Longitude: -77.3217 In this case, the coordinates for Emmitsburg have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Emmitsburg 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 308.006 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.696 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.522 degrees. |