Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Nicols, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Nicols and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Nicols
- 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 Nicols:
- 44.822035, -93.220585
- 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 Nicols
- 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 Dakota County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Dakota County
- Since Nicols is near Hennepin County and also Scott County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Hennepin County
- eBird sighting report for Scott 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 Nicols ...
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.
- Apple Valley
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Apple Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apple Valley
- Apple Valley is located in Dakota County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 54,847 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Apple Valley <2>
- Cedar Grove
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Grove
- Cedar Grove is located in Dakota County
- Deer Park
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest) - Edina
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edina
- Edina is located in Hennepin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 52,477 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Edina <2>
- Orchard Garden
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard Garden have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Garden
- Orchard Garden is located in Dakota County
- Pine Bend
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east) - Rich Valley
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rich Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Valley
- Rich Valley is located in Dakota County
- Roseport
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east) - Savage
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Savage have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Savage
- Savage is located in Scott County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 32,858 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Savage <2>
- Sunfish Lake
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sunfish Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunfish Lake
- Sunfish Lake is located in Dakota County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 551 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sunfish Lake <2>
How Far From Nicols 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 community such as Nicols to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Nicols and extending to:
- Hastings, which is the Seat of Dakota County, lies 19 miles [30.6 km]<3> to the east southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Nicols to Hastings, 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 10 miles [16.1 km] to the north northeast (NNE). The buggy would take a little over three hours and walking would take four to five hours.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 925 miles [1,488.6 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 37 days and walking would take 53 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,229 miles [10,024.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,983 miles [11,238 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,891 miles [7,871.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Nicols. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Dakota County: www.co.dakota.mn.us/
The official website for State of Minnesota: https://mn.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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Nicols) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Nicols. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.8220, Longitude: -93.2206 In this case, the coordinates for Nicols have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Nicols 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 318.264 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 316.102 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 310.658 degrees. |