RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Maryland >> Baltimore County >> Orchard Hills >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

  • Weather ...
  • 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 Orchard Hills:
    • 39.417606, -76.621080
    • 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.
    • Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Orchard Hills
  • 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 Baltimore County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Baltimore County
    • Since Orchard Hills is near Baltimore City and also Harford County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Baltimore City
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Harford 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:
    • Open the Waymark.com report for Orchard Hills

Communities Also Named Orchard Hills ...

We found eight communities that are also named Orchard Hills.

There is one other community in Maryland that is also named Orchard Hills.

Beyond Maryland, we know of seven communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Located In Maryland ...
    • Washington County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Washington County and lies 61 miles [98.2 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Orchard Hills.
  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Georgia
      • Clayton County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Clayton County and lies 589 miles [947.9 km]<1> to the southwest of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Clayton County community of Orchard Hills.
      • Walker County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Walker County and lies 567 miles [912.5 km] to the west southwest of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Walker County community of Orchard Hills.
    • North Carolina
      • Rowan County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Rowan County and lies 337 miles [542.3 km]<1> to the southwest of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Rowan County community of Orchard Hills.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Armstrong County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County and lies 173 miles [278.4 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Armstrong County community of Orchard Hills.
      • Berks County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Berks County and lies 81 miles [130.4 km] to the northeast of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Berks County community of Orchard Hills.
      • Delaware County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Pennsylvania community of Orchard Hills [Delaware County].
    • Utah
      • Davis County
      • This Orchard Hills is located in Davis County and lies 1,852 miles [2,980.5 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Orchard Hills that is located in Baltimore County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Davis County community of Orchard Hills.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Orchard Hills ...

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.

  • Boxwood
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
    • Boxwood is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boxwood
  • Chapel Hill
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Chapel Hill is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Hill
  • Chestnut Hill
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Chestnut Hill is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Hill
  • Deer Run
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Deer Run is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Run
  • Donnybrook
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Donnybrook is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnybrook
  • Fellowship Forest
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Fellowship Forest is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fellowship Forest
  • Four Winds
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Four Winds is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Winds
  • Green Ridge
    (Less than 2 miles to the east)
    • Green Ridge is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Ridge
  • Havenwood
    (Less than 2 miles to the north)
    • Havenwood is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Havenwood
  • Hunt Ridge
    (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Hunt Ridge is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunt Ridge
  • Hunters Hill
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Hunters Hill is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Hill
  • Huntspring
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
    • Huntspring is located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntspring
  • Continue List   (15 more) ...
    • Lake
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Lake is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lake
    • Lutherville
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
    • Martins Choice
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Martins Choice is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martins Choice
    • Mays Chapel
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Mays Chapel is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mays Chapel
    • Meadowland
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Meadowland is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowland
    • Pot Spring
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
      • Pot Spring is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pot Spring
    • Ridervale
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Ridervale is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ridervale
    • Riderwood
      (Less than 2 miles to the west)
      • Riderwood is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riderwood
    • Riderwood Hills
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Riderwood Hills is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riderwood Hills
    • Rockland
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Rockland is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
    • Rodgers Forge
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Rodgers Forge is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodgers Forge
    • Seminary Overlook
      (Less than 2 miles to the northwest)
      • Seminary Overlook is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seminary Overlook
    • Seminary Springs
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Seminary Springs is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seminary Springs
    • Sunset Knoll
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Sunset Knoll is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Knoll
    • Valley Crest
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Valley Crest is located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Crest

How Far From Orchard Hills 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 community such as Orchard Hills to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Orchard Hills and extending to:

  • Towson, which is the Seat of Baltimore County, lies just to the Southeast.
  • Annapolis, which is the State Capital of Maryland, lies 31 miles [49.9 km]<1> to the south southeast (SSE). If you could walk a straight line from Orchard Hills to Annapolis, 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 42 miles [67.6 km] to the south southwest (SSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just about two full days and walking would take about three full days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,858 miles [9,427.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,564 miles [10,563.7 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,441 miles [7,147.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Orchard Hills) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer.

Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Rock Creek to see Pete ... Rock Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name.

Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time.

Also keep in mind that Orchard Hills could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out.
<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 Orchard Hills to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Orchard Hills. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.4176, Longitude: -76.6211       In this case, the coordinates for Orchard Hills have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 307.609 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.20 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.335 degrees.