Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Sheppard, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Sheppard and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Sheppard
- 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 Sheppard:
- 39.389273, -76.613302
- 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 Sheppard
- 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:
- eBird sighting report for Baltimore County
- Since Sheppard is near Baltimore City and also Anne Arundel County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Baltimore City
- eBird sighting report for Anne Arundel 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 Sheppard ...
We found five communities that share the name Sheppard.
Within Maryland, the name Sheppard is unique.
Beyond Maryland, we know of another five communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these five communities, four are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- California
- Ontario
- Wisconsin
Curious and Interesting Names Near Sheppard ...
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.
- Bare Hills
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bare Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bare Hills
- Bare Hills is located in Baltimore County
- Bonnie Ridge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonnie Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonnie Ridge
- Bonnie Ridge is located in Baltimore County
- Chestnut Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chestnut Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Hill
- Chestnut Hill is located in Baltimore County
- Donnybrook
(Less than 2 miles to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Donnybrook have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Donnybrook
- Donnybrook is located in Baltimore County
- Fellowship Forest
(Less than 2 miles to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fellowship Forest have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fellowship Forest
- Fellowship Forest is located in Baltimore County
- Four Winds
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Four Winds have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Winds
- Four Winds is located in Baltimore County
- Gallagher Park
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gallagher Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gallagher Park
- Gallagher Park is located in Baltimore City
- Green Ridge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Ridge
- Green Ridge is located in Baltimore County
- Havenwood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north) - Hillendale
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hillendale have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillendale
- Hillendale is located in Baltimore County
- Hillendale Park
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hillendale Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillendale Park
- Hillendale Park is located in Baltimore County
- Homeland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south) - Continue List (13 more) ...
- Jones Valley
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jones Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jones Valley
- Jones Valley is located in Baltimore County
- Lake
(Less than 2 miles to the west) - Lutherville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lutherville
- Lutherville is located in Baltimore County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lutherville <4>
- Martins Choice
(Less than 2 miles to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martins Choice have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martins Choice
- Martins Choice is located in Baltimore County
- Meadowland
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meadowland have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowland
- Meadowland is located in Baltimore County
- Orchard Hills
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
- Orchard Hills is located in Baltimore County
- Ramblewood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ramblewood have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ramblewood
- Ramblewood is located in Baltimore City
- Ridervale
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest) - Riderwood
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest) - Riderwood Hills
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Riderwood Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Riderwood Hills
- Riderwood Hills is located in Baltimore County
- Rodgers Forge
(Less than 2 miles to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rodgers Forge have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rodgers Forge
- Rodgers Forge is located in Baltimore County
- Sunset Knoll
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunset Knoll have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunset Knoll
- Sunset Knoll is located in Baltimore County
- Twinridge
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
- Jones Valley
How Far From Sheppard 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 Sheppard to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers and using the location of where the historic<5> community of Sheppard once stood, the straight-line distance beginning in Sheppard and extending to:
- Towson, which is the Seat of Baltimore County, lies just to the Northeast.
- Annapolis, which is the State Capital of Maryland, lies 29 miles [46.7 km]<1> to the south southeast (SSE). If you could walk a straight line from Sheppard to Annapolis, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just about two full 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 40 miles [64.4 km] to the southwest (SW). 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 over two days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,859 miles [9,429.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,565 miles [10,565.3 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,442 miles [7,148.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Baltimore County: www.co.ba.md.us/
The official website for State of Maryland: www.maryland.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- Sheppard) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sheppard. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.3893, Longitude: -76.6133 In this case, the coordinates for Sheppard have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird 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 Sheppard 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> | 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. |
| <4> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <5> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Sheppard, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Sheppard to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 307.606 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.193 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.343 degrees. |