Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Portland, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Portland and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Portland
- 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 Portland:
- 42.870437, -84.902352
- 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 Portland
- 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 Ionia County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Ionia County
- Since Portland is near Clinton County and also Eaton County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Clinton County
- eBird sighting report for Eaton 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 Portland ...
We found 32 communities that share the name Portland.
Within Michigan, the name Portland is unique.
Beyond Michigan, we know of another 32 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 32 communities, 30 are located in the United States and two are in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- Fremont County
- This Portland is located in Fremont County and lies 1,095 miles [1,762.2 km]<2> to the west of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Fremont County community of Portland.
- Ouray County
- This Portland is located in Ouray County and lies 1,238 miles [1,992.4 km] to the west of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ouray County community of Portland.
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Franklin County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Illinois community of Portland [Franklin County].
- Whiteside County
- This Portland is located in Whiteside County and lies 272 miles [437.7 km]<2> to the west southwest of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Whiteside County community of Portland.
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Adair County
- This Portland is located in Adair County and lies 398 miles [640.5 km]<2> to the south of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Adair County community of Portland.
- Jefferson County
- This Portland is located in Jefferson County and lies 321 miles [516.6 km] to the south of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jefferson County community of Portland.
- Pendleton County
- This Portland is located in Pendleton County and lies 285 miles [458.7 km] to the south of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pendleton County community of Portland.
- Maine
- Missouri
- New York
- Chautauqua County
- This Portland is located in Chautauqua County and lies 278 miles [447.4 km]<2> to the east of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Chautauqua County community of Portland.
- Tompkins County
- This Portland is located in Tompkins County and lies 425 miles [684 km] to the east of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tompkins County community of Portland.
- Newfoundland and Labrador
- This Portland lies 1,537 miles [2,473.6 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Ontario
- This Portland lies 451 miles [725.8 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Lehigh County
- We found mention of this community, but have little information.<3> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Pennsylvania community of Portland [Lehigh County].
- Northampton County
- This Portland is located in Northampton County and lies 521 miles [838.5 km]<2> to the east southeast of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Northampton County community of Portland.
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Jefferson County
- This Portland is located in Jefferson County and lies 206 miles [331.5 km]<2> to the west of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jefferson County community of Portland.
- Monroe County
- This Portland is located in Monroe County and lies 305 miles [490.8 km] to the west northwest of the Portland that is located in Ionia County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Monroe County community of Portland.
Curious and Interesting Names Near Portland ...
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.
- Delta Mills
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Delta Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delta Mills
- Delta Mills is located in Eaton County
- Eagle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle
- Eagle is located in Clinton County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 119 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eagle <5>
- Fowler
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowler
- Fowler is located in Clinton County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,218 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fowler <5>
- Frost Corners
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frost Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frost Corners
- Frost Corners is located in Ionia County
- Grand Ledge
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grand Ledge have been provided by the GNIS.<4> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grand Ledge
- Grand Ledge is located in Eaton County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,881 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Grand Ledge <5>
- Little Venice
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Little Venice
- Little Venice is located in Eaton County
- Lyons
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyons
- Lyons is located in Ionia County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 808 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lyons <5>
- Needmore
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Needmore
- Needmore is located in Eaton County
- Prairie
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)
How Far From Portland 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 city such as Portland to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Portland and extending to:
- Ionia, which is the Seat of Ionia County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<2> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Portland to Ionia, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
- Lansing, which is the State Capital of Michigan, lies 20 miles [32.2 km] to the east southeast (ESE). The buggy would take most of a day and walking would take just over a day.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 493 miles [793.4 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take most of a day, a buggy would take 20 days and walking would take 28 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,034 miles [9,710.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,770 miles [10,895.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,652 miles [7,486.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Portland: www.portland-michigan.org/
The official website for Ionia County: www.ioniacounty.org/
The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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 Portland, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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- Portland) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Portland. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.8704, Longitude: -84.9024 |
| <3> | 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 Portland 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. |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Portland 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 312.613 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.402 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.904 degrees. |