Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

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

• 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 Downstown:
  • 39.539838, -74.955727
  • 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 Downstown

• 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 Gloucester County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Gloucester County
  • Since Downstown is near Atlantic County and also Cumberland County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Atlantic County
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Cumberland 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 Downstown

Curious and Interesting Names Near Downstown ...

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.

• Berryland
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Berryland is located in Gloucester County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berryland
• Blue Bell
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
  • Blue Bell is located in Gloucester County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Blue Bell
• Cedar Lake
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
  • Cedar Lake is located in Atlantic County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Lake
• Five Points
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Five Points is located in Atlantic County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Points
• Forest Grove
  (Less than 2 miles to the southwest)
  • Forest Grove is located in Gloucester County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forest Grove
• New Italy
  (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
  • New Italy is located in Cumberland County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Italy
• Piney Hollow
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
  • Piney Hollow is located in Gloucester County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Piney Hollow
• Plainville
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Plainville is located in Gloucester County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainville
• Pleasantville
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
  • Pleasantville is located in Cumberland County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasantville
• Victory Lakes
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Victory Lakes is located in Gloucester County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Victory Lakes
• Vineland
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
  • Vineland is located in Cumberland County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vineland
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 58,615 people
• Wheat Road
  (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
  • Wheat Road is located in Atlantic County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Wheat Road
• Willow Grove
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Willow Grove is located in Salem County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Willow Grove

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

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<1> beginning in Downstown and extending to:

• Woodbury, which is the Seat of Gloucester County, lies 23 miles [37 km]<1> to the north northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Downstown to Woodbury, with an average speed<2> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just about two full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
• Trenton, which is the State Capital of New Jersey, lies 48 miles [77.2 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take most of two days and walking would take about three full days.
• The White House (Washington, DC) is 119 miles [191.5 km] to the west southwest (WSW). Driving would take about two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 7 days.
• The shortest distance<3> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,782 miles [9,305.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<4>
• The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,485 miles [10,436.6 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<5>
• The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,362 miles [7,020 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<6>'