Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Biscay, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Biscay and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Biscay
- 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 Biscay:
- 44.826270, -94.273529
- 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 Biscay
- 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 McLeod County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for McLeod County
- Since Biscay is near Sibley County and also Meeker County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Sibley County
- eBird sighting report for Meeker 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 Biscay ...
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.
- Green Isle
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Green Isle. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Isle
- Green Isle is located in Sibley County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 552 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Green Isle <2>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Green Isle
- From Biscay to Green Isle
- Greenleaf
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northwest) - Jennie
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north) - Lester Prairie
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lester Prairie
- Lester Prairie is located in McLeod County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,724 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lester Prairie <2>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Lester Prairie
- From Biscay to Lester Prairie
- New Germany
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for New Germany have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Germany
- New Germany is located in Carver County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 422 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Germany <2>
- Plato
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Plato. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<1>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plato
- Plato is located in McLeod County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 303 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plato <2>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Plato
- From Biscay to Plato
- Rice Lake
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northeast) - Silver Lake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Lake
- Silver Lake is located in McLeod County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 806 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Silver Lake <2>
- Sunrise Court
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunrise Court have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunrise Court
- Sunrise Court is located in McLeod County
- Young America
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Young America have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Young America
- Young America is located in Carver County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Young America <2>
How Far From Biscay 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 city such as Biscay to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<4> beginning in Biscay and extending to:
- Glencoe, which is the Seat of McLeod County, lies just to the East Southeast.
- Saint Paul, which is the State Capital of Minnesota, lies 58 miles [93.3 km]<4> to the east (E). If you could walk a straight line from Biscay to Saint Paul, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of three days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take over two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 973 miles [1,565.9 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take most of two days, a buggy would take 38 days and walking would take 56 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,263 miles [10,079.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,019 miles [11,296 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,930 miles [7,934.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Biscay. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for McLeod County: www.co.mcleod.mn.us/
The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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> | 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- Biscay) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Biscay. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.8263, Longitude: -94.2735 |
| <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 Biscay 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 319.011 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 316.954 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 311.231 degrees. |