RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
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Outdoor Activities ...

As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).

When in Forest Lake, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Forest Lake and the surrounding area.

  • Weather ...
  • 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 Forest Lake:
    • 45.253587, -92.958121
    • 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 Forest Lake
  • 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 Forest Lake ...

We found seventeen communities that share the name Forest Lake.

Within Minnesota, the name Forest Lake is unique.

Beyond Minnesota, we know of another seventeen communities that are located throughout in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Tuscaloosa County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Tuscaloosa County and lies 881 miles [1,417.8 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Tuscaloosa County community of Forest Lake.
    • California
      • Lake County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Lake County and lies 1,579 miles [2,541.2 km]<1> to the west of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lake County community of Forest Lake.
      • San Joaquin County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the California community of Forest Lake [San Joaquin County].
    • Georgia
      • Bibb County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Bibb County and lies 986 miles [1,586.8 km]<1> to the south southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Bibb County community of Forest Lake.
    • Illinois
      • Lake County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Lake County and lies 322 miles [518.2 km]<1> to the southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lake County community of Forest Lake.
    • Indiana
      • Hendricks County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Indiana community of Forest Lake [Hendricks County].
    • Kansas
      • Wyandotte County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Forest Lake [Wyandotte County].
    • Maryland
      • Harford County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Harford County and lies 929 miles [1,495.1 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Harford County community of Forest Lake.
    • Massachusetts
      • Hampden County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Massachusetts community of Forest Lake [Hampden County].
    • Michigan
      • Alger County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Alger County and lies 303 miles [487.6 km]<1> to the east northeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Alger County community of Forest Lake.
    • New Hampshire
      • Cheshire County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the New Hampshire community of Forest Lake [Cheshire County].
    • Pennsylvania
      • Susquehanna County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Susquehanna County and lies 879 miles [1,414.6 km]<1> to the east of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Susquehanna County community of Forest Lake.
    • South Carolina
      • Greenwood County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Greenwood County and lies 951 miles [1,530.5 km]<1> to the southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Greenwood County community of Forest Lake.
      • Horry County
      • This Forest Lake is located in Horry County and lies 1,091 miles [1,755.8 km] to the southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Horry County community of Forest Lake.
      • Richland County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<2> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the South Carolina community of Forest Lake [Richland County].
      • York County
      • This Forest Lake is located in York County and lies 945 miles [1,520.8 km] to the southeast of the Forest Lake that is located in Washington County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the York County community of Forest Lake.
    • Texas
      • Brazos County
      • Although located in Brazos County, we don't know the location within the county.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Brazos County community of Forest Lake.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Forest 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.

  • Bald Eagle
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bald Eagle have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bald Eagle
    • Bald Eagle is located in Ramsey County
  • Bonnie Glen
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bonnie Glen have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonnie Glen
    • Bonnie Glen is located in Chisago County
  • Centerville
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Centerville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Centerville
    • Centerville is located in Anoka County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,034 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Centerville <4>
  • City of Columbus
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for City of Columbus have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for City of Columbus
    • City of Columbus is located in Anoka County
    • Estimated population in 2015: 4,007 people
  • Ham Lake
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ham Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ham Lake
    • Ham Lake is located in Anoka County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,943 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ham Lake <4>
  • Hugo
    (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hugo have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hugo
    • Hugo is located in Washington County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 15,452 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hugo <4>
  • Maple Island
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maple Island have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Island
    • Maple Island is located in Washington County
  • Martin Lake
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martin Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin Lake
    • Martin Lake is located in Anoka County
  • Stacy
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stacy
    • Stacy is located in Chisago County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,525 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Stacy <4>
  • White Bear Beach
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for White Bear Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for White Bear Beach
    • White Bear Beach is located in Ramsey County
  • White Bear Lake
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)
  • Wyoming
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Wyoming have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wyoming
    • Wyoming is located in Chisago County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 8,084 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Wyoming <4>

How Far From Forest Lake 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 Forest Lake to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Forest Lake and extending to:

  • Stillwater, which is the Seat of Washington County, lies 15 miles [24.1 km]<1> to the south southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Forest Lake to Stillwater, with an average speed<5> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take four to five hours.
  • Saint Paul, which is the State Capital of Minnesota, lies 21 miles [33.8 km] to the south southwest (SSW). The buggy would take most of a day and walking would take just over a day.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 924 miles [1,487 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 36 days and walking would take 53 days.
  • The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,198 miles [9,974.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,953 miles [11,189.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,862 miles [7,824.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>

The official website for Forest Lake: www.ci.forest-lake.mn.us/

The official website for Washington County: www.co.washington.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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Forest Lake) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Forest Lake. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 45.2536, Longitude: -92.9581       In this case, the coordinates for Forest Lake have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<2>If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer.

Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Rock Creek to see Pete ... Rock Creek is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name.

Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time.

Also keep in mind that Forest Lake could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out.
<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're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<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 Forest 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 318.078 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.948 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.399 degrees.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 07 Apr 2024