Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Balsam, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Balsam and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Balsam
- 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 Balsam:
- 46.781058, -93.156052
- 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 Balsam
- 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 Aitkin County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Aitkin County
- Since Balsam is near Carlton County and also Saint Louis County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Carlton County
- eBird sighting report for Saint Louis 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 Balsam ...
We found four communities that share the name Balsam.
Within Minnesota, the name Balsam is unique.
Beyond Minnesota, we know of another four communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these four communities, three are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Michigan
- North Carolina
- Ontario
- This Balsam lies 709 miles [1,141 km]<1> to the east of the Balsam that is located in Aitkin County.
- Pennsylvania
Curious and Interesting Names Near Balsam ...
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.
- Ball Bluff
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ball Bluff have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ball Bluff
- Ball Bluff is located in Aitkin County
- Floodwood
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Floodwood have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Floodwood
- Floodwood is located in Saint Louis County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 525 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Floodwood <3>
- Haypoint
(23 miles [37 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Haypoint
- Haypoint is located in Aitkin County
- Hill City
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hill City have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hill City
- Hill City is located in Aitkin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 580 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hill City <3>
- Island
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northeast) - Kettle River
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kettle River have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kettle River
- Kettle River is located in Carlton County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 170 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kettle River <3>
- Libby
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Libby
- Libby is located in Aitkin County
- Ronald
(23 miles [37 km] to the south) - Swan River
(21 miles [33.8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Swan River have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Swan River
- Swan River is located in Itasca County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Swan River <3>
- Thor
(24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
How Far From Balsam 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 Balsam to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Balsam and extending to:
- Aitkin, which is the Seat of Aitkin County, lies 31 miles [49.9 km]<1> to the west southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Balsam to Aitkin, 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.
- Saint Paul, which is the State Capital of Minnesota, lies 126 miles [202.8 km] to the south (S). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 978 miles [1,573.9 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take most of two days, a buggy would take 39 days and walking would take 56 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,126 miles [9,858.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,884 miles [11,078.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,801 miles [7,726.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Balsam. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Aitkin County: www.co.aitkin.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 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Balsam) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Balsam. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 46.7811, Longitude: -93.1561 In this case, the coordinates for Balsam 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 Balsam 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 318.206 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 316.299 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.084 degrees. |