Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Sonoma, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Sonoma and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Sonoma
- 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 Sonoma:
- 42.231725, -85.228443
- 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 Sonoma
- 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 Calhoun County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Calhoun County
- Since Sonoma is near Kalamazoo County and also Branch County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Kalamazoo County
- eBird sighting report for Branch 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 Sonoma ...
We found five communities that share the name Sonoma.
Within Michigan, the name Sonoma is unique.
Beyond Michigan, we know of another five communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- California
- Maryland
- North Carolina
- Texas
Curious and Interesting Names Near Sonoma ...
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.
- Climax
(5 miles [8 km] to the west) - Greenfield Park
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenfield Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield Park
- Greenfield Park is located in Calhoun County
- Joppa
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Joppa
- Joppa is located in Calhoun County
- Lakeview
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north) - Level Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Level Park
- Level Park is located in Calhoun County
- Orchard Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard Park have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Park
- Orchard Park is located in Calhoun County
- Pine Creek
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Creek
- Pine Creek is located in Calhoun County
- Stanley Corners
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stanley Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stanley Corners
- Stanley Corners is located in Calhoun County
- Sunrise Heights
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunrise Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunrise Heights
- Sunrise Heights is located in Calhoun County
How Far From Sonoma to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers & Almanacs that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Sonoma to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Sonoma and extending to:
- Marshall, which is the Seat of Calhoun County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<1> to the east. If you could walk a straight line from Sonoma to Marshall, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
- Lansing, which is the State Capital of Michigan, lies 48 miles [77.2 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take most of two days and walking would take about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 487 miles [783.8 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take most of a day, a buggy would take 19 days and walking would take 28 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,076 miles [9,778.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,811 miles [10,961.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,692 miles [7,551 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Sonoma. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Calhoun County: www.calhoun-mi.com/
The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.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 from Point A (ie- Sonoma) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Sonoma. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 42.2317, Longitude: -85.2284 In this case, the coordinates for Sonoma have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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 Sonoma, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <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 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 Sonoma to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 312.846 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.573 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 307.274 degrees. |