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

Tidbits & Trivia

Introduction ...

Below is our collection of tidbits and odds 'n ends for Velvet Valley.

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Velvet Valley, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Velvet Valley 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 Velvet Valley:
    • 39.424828, -76.735807<1>
    • 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 Velvet Valley
  • 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 Velvet Valley is near Baltimore City and also Carroll 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 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:
    • Open the Waymark.com report for Velvet Valley

Curious and Interesting Names Near Velvet Valley ...

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.

  • Autumn Wind
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Autumn Wind is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Autumn Wind
  • Belltown
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Belltown is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Belltown
  • Cave Valley
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Cave Valley is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cave Valley
  • Caves Park
    (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
    • Caves Park is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Caves Park
  • Chapel Ridge
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Chapel Ridge is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chapel Ridge
  • Chestnut Ridge
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)
    • Chestnut Ridge is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Ridge
  • Deer Run
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
    • Deer Run is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deer Run
  • Delight
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Delight is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delight
  • Fallswood
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Fallswood is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fallswood
  • Fields of Stevenson
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Fields of Stevenson is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fields of Stevenson
  • Fishtown
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Fishtown is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fishtown
  • Foxridge
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Foxridge is also located in Baltimore County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Foxridge
  • Continue List   (26 more) ...
    • Green Spring Junction
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
      • Green Spring Junction is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Spring Junction
    • Greene Tree
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Greene Tree is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greene Tree
    • Greenspring
      (Less than 2 miles to the east)
      • Greenspring is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenspring
    • Greenwood
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Greenwood is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenwood
    • Grey Rock
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
      • Grey Rock is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grey Rock
    • Halcyon Gate
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
      • Halcyon Gate is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Halcyon Gate
    • Hickory Meadow
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Hickory Meadow is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hickory Meadow
    • Hillside Hunt
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
      • Hillside Hunt is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillside Hunt
    • Hunt Cup Hill
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Hunt Cup Hill is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunt Cup Hill
    • Hunters Glen
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Hunters Glen is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunters Glen
    • Huntspring
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Huntspring is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntspring
    • Julian Woods
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
      • Julian Woods is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Julian Woods
    • Leisure Hill
      (Less than 2 miles to the south)
      • Leisure Hill is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leisure Hill
    • Pikesville
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Pleasant Hill
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Pleasant Hill is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
    • Rockland
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)
      • Rockland is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
    • Rogers ‑ Historic
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)
      • Rogers was located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rogers
    • Seminary Springs
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
      • Seminary Springs is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seminary Springs
    • Timber Grove
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Timber Grove is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Timber Grove
    • Tollgate
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
      • Tollgate is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tollgate
    • Valley Brook
      (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
      • Valley Brook is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Brook
    • Valley Hills
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
      • Valley Hills is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Hills
    • Velvet Hills
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Velvet Hills is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Velvet Hills
    • Velvet Ridge
      (Less than 2 miles to the north)
      • Velvet Ridge is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Velvet Ridge
    • Waterspout
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
      • Waterspout is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Waterspout
    • Whispering Meadows
      (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
      • Whispering Meadows is also located in Baltimore County
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Whispering Meadows

How Far From Velvet Valley 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 included the distance from a community such as Velvet Valley to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Velvet Valley and extending to:

  • Towson, which is the Seat of Baltimore County, lies just to the East Southeast.
  • Annapolis, which is the State Capital of Maryland, lies 33 miles [53.1 km]<3> to the south southeast (SSE). If you could walk a straight line from Velvet Valley 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 39 miles [62.8 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 over two days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,862 miles [9,434 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,569 miles [10,571.8 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,446 miles [7,155.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>

Footnotes ...

<1>GPS Coordinates for Velvet Valley:
     Decimal: 39.42482, -76.735807
     DDMMSS: 39° 25' 29", -76° 44' 8"
<2>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<3>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- Velvet Valley) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<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 Velvet Valley 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 Velvet Valley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.4248, Longitude: -76.7358       In this case, the coordinates for Velvet Valley have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 307.676 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.278 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.381 degrees.