Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Torch Lake, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Torch Lake and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Torch Lake
- 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 Torch Lake:
- 45.075281, -85.358684
- 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 Torch Lake
- 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 Antrim County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Antrim County
- Since Torch Lake is near Charlevoix County and also Grand Traverse County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Charlevoix County
- eBird sighting report for Grand Traverse 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
Curious and Interesting Names Near Torch Lake ...
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.
- Boulder Park
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boulder Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boulder Park
- Boulder Park is located in Charlevoix County
- Central Lake
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Central Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Central Lake
- Central Lake is located in Antrim County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 942 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Central Lake <2>
- Clam Lake ‑ Historic
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast) - Clam River
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clam River have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clam River
- Clam River is located in Antrim County
- Elk Rapids
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elk Rapids
- Elk Rapids is located in Antrim County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,626 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Elk Rapids <2>
- Goo ‑ Historic
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east) - Graves Crossing
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Graves Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Graves Crossing
- Graves Crossing is located in Antrim County
- Green River
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green River have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green River
- Green River is located in Antrim County
- Snowflake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast) - Torch River
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Torch River have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Torch River
- Torch River is located in Kalkaska County
How Far From Torch Lake 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 Torch Lake to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<4> beginning in Torch Lake and extending to:
- Bellaire, which is the Seat of Antrim County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<4> to the southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Torch Lake to Bellaire, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Lansing, which is the State Capital of Michigan, lies 166 miles [267.2 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 603 miles [970.4 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving would take just over a day, a buggy would take 24 days and walking would take 35 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,947 miles [9,570.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,691 miles [10,768.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,580 miles [7,370.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Torch Lake. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Antrim County: www.antrimcounty.org/
The official website for State of Michigan: https://www.michigan.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <4> | 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- Torch Lake) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Torch Lake. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.0753, Longitude: -85.3587 In this case, the coordinates for Torch Lake have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <5> | 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. |
| <6> | 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 Torch Lake to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 312.826 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 309.969 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.381 degrees. |