Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

• Weather ...
  • Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
  • The National Weather Service forecast for Hounds Ear

• 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 Hounds Ear:
  • 36.177906, -81.745109
  • 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.
  • Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Hounds Ear

• 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 Watauga County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Watauga County
  • Since Hounds Ear is near Caldwell County and also Avery County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Caldwell County
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Avery 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:
  • Open the Waymark.com report for Hounds Ear

Curious and Interesting Names Near Hounds Ear ...

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.

• Cherokee Woods
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Cherokee Woods is located in Caldwell County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherokee Woods
• Echo Park
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Echo Park is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Echo Park
• Grave Yard ‑ Historic
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Grave Yard is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grave Yard
• Hemlock Ridge
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)
  • Hemlock Ridge is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hemlock Ridge
• Hillcrest
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Hillcrest is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hillcrest
• Laurel Park
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Laurel Park is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel Park
• Oak Grove
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Oak Grove is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
• Poplar Grove
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)
  • Poplar Grove is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poplar Grove
• Seven Devils
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
  • Seven Devils is located in Avery County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seven Devils
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 203 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Seven Devils <1>
• Ski Mountain
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
  • Ski Mountain is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ski Mountain
• Valley Creek
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
  • Valley Creek is located in Watauga County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Creek

How Far From Hounds Ear 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 Hounds Ear to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Hounds Ear and extending to:

• Boone, which is the Seat of Watauga County, lies just to the Northeast.
• Raleigh, which is the State Capital of North Carolina, lies 175 miles [281.6 km]<2> to the east (E). If you could drive a straight line from Hounds Ear to Raleigh, with an average speed<3>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take about three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 10 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 7 days.
• The White House (Washington, DC) is 318 miles [511.8 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take five to six hours, a buggy would take 13 days and walking would take 18 days.
• The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,216 miles [10,003.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
• The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,921 miles [11,138.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
• The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,798 miles [7,721.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>'