Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Topsail, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Topsail and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Topsail
- 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 Topsail:
- 34.386305, -77.688463
- 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 Topsail
- 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 Pender County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Pender County
- Since Topsail is near New Hanover County and also Onslow County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for New Hanover County
- eBird sighting report for Onslow 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 Topsail ...
We found two communities that share the name Topsail.
Within North Carolina, the name Topsail is unique.
Beyond North Carolina, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these two communities, one is located in the United States and the other in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Newfoundland and Labrador
- This Topsail lies 1,566 miles [2,520.2 km]<1> to the northeast of the Topsail that is located in Pender County.
- Pennsylvania
- Newfoundland and Labrador
Curious and Interesting Names Near Topsail ...
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.
- Falcon Point
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Falcon Point have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Falcon Point
- Falcon Point is located in New Hanover County
- Holly Ridge
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Ridge
- Holly Ridge is located in Onslow County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,092 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Holly Ridge <4>
- Kings Landing
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kings Landing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kings Landing
- Kings Landing is located in Pender County
- Mooretown
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west) - Ocean View
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ocean View have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ocean View
- Ocean View is located in New Hanover County
- Queens Point
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Queens Point have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Queens Point
- Queens Point is located in New Hanover County
- Rocky Point
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Point
- Rocky Point is located in Pender County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rocky Point <4>
- Shell Bank
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shell Bank have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Bank
- Shell Bank is located in New Hanover County
- Stoneybrook
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stoneybrook have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoneybrook
- Stoneybrook is located in New Hanover County
- Surf City
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Surf City have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Surf City
- Surf City is located in Onslow County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,532 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Surf City <4>
- Topsail Beach
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Topsail Beach
- Topsail Beach is located in Pender County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 438 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Topsail Beach <4>
- Treasure Cove
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Treasure Cove have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Treasure Cove
- Treasure Cove is located in New Hanover County
- Woodside
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
How Far From Topsail 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 community such as Topsail to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Topsail and extending to:
- Burgaw, which is the Seat of Pender County, lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<1> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Topsail to Burgaw, 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 five to six hours.
- Raleigh, which is the State Capital of North Carolina, lies 110 miles [177 km] to the north northwest (NNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 7 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 313 miles [503.7 km] to the north (N). Driving would take five to six hours, a buggy would take 13 days and walking would take 18 days.
- The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,118 miles [9,846 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,804 miles [10,950 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,690 miles [7,547.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Topsail. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Pender County: www.pender-county.com/
The official website for State of North Carolina: https://www.nc.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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Topsail) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Topsail. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.3863, Longitude: -77.6885 |
| <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 Bird Creek to see Pete ... Bird 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 Topsail 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 Topsail 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 308.447 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.395 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.572 degrees. |