Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Branson, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Branson and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Branson
- 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 Branson:
- 36.647616, -93.263032
- 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 Branson
- 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 Taney County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Taney County
- Since Branson is near Stone County and also Boone County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Stone County
- eBird sighting report for Boone 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 Branson ...
We found two communities that share the name Branson.
Within Missouri, the name Branson is unique.
Beyond Missouri, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- California
- Colorado
Curious and Interesting Names Near Branson ...
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.
- Bull Creek
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bull Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bull Creek
- Bull Creek is located in Taney County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 633 people
- Edgewater Beach
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edgewater Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgewater Beach
- Edgewater Beach is located in Taney County
- Flag ‑ Historic
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Indian Point
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Indian Point have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Indian Point
- Indian Point is located in Stone County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 530 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Indian Point <4>
- Kirbyville
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kirbyville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kirbyville
- Kirbyville is located in Taney County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 227 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kirbyville <4>
- Lakeview
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest) - Marvel Cave
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Marvel Cave have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Marvel Cave
- Marvel Cave is located in Stone County
- Notch
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest) - Rockaway Beach
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rockaway Beach have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockaway Beach
- Rockaway Beach is located in Taney County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 864 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rockaway Beach <4>
- Silver Dollar City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Dollar City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Dollar City
- Silver Dollar City is located in Stone County
- Table Rock
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Table Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Table Rock
- Table Rock is located in Taney County
How Far From Branson 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 Branson to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Branson and extending to:
- Forsyth, which is the Seat of Taney County, lies just to the East Northeast.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 897 miles [1,443.6 km]<2> to the east northeast (ENE). If you could drive a straight line from Branson to White House, with an average speed<5>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take most of two days to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 51 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 35 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,651 miles [10,703.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,387 miles [11,888.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,268 miles [8,478 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Branson: www.cityofbranson.org/
The official website for Taney County: www.co.taney.mo.us/
The official website for State of Missouri: https://www.mo.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Branson, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Branson) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Branson. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.6476, Longitude: -93.2630 In this case, the coordinates for Branson have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 Branson 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 317.98 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 314.695 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 312.485 degrees. |