Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Backus, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Backus and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Backus
- 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 Backus:
- 46.820487, -94.514850
- 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 Backus
- 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 Cass County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Cass County
- Since Backus is near Hubbard County and also Crow Wing County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Hubbard County
- eBird sighting report for Crow Wing 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 Backus ...
We found three communities that share the name Backus.
Within Minnesota, the name Backus is unique.
Beyond Minnesota, we know of another three communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- New York
- Pennsylvania
- West Virginia
Curious and Interesting Names Near Backus ...
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.
- Chamberlain
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chamberlain have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chamberlain
- Chamberlain is located in Hubbard County
- Hackensack
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hackensack have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hackensack
- Hackensack is located in Cass County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 308 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hackensack <3>
- Huntersville
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Huntersville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huntersville
- Huntersville is located in Wadena County
- Jenkins
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Jenkins have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Jenkins
- Jenkins is located in Crow Wing County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 473 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Jenkins <3>
- Longville
(18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Longville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Longville
- Longville is located in Cass County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 148 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Longville <3>
- Mildred
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast) - Pine River
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine River have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine River
- Pine River is located in Cass County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 933 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pine River <3>
- Poplar
(18 miles [29 km] to the southwest)
How Far From Backus 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 Backus to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Backus and extending to:
- Walker, which is the Seat of Cass County, lies 19 miles [30.6 km]<1> to the north. If you could walk a straight line from Backus to Walker, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 6 hours.
- Saint Paul, which is the State Capital of Minnesota, lies 145 miles [233.4 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,036 miles [1,667.3 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take over two days, a buggy would take 41 days and walking would take 59 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,166 miles [9,923.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,926 miles [11,146.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,848 miles [7,802.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Backus: www.backusmn.com/
The official website for Cass County: www.co.cass.mn.us/
The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a '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- Backus) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Backus. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.8205, Longitude: -94.5148 In this case, the coordinates for Backus have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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. |
| <3> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Backus 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 319.184 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 317.414 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.843 degrees. |