RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Nevada >> Washoe County >> Reno >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

  • 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 Reno:
    • 39.535822, -119.801216
    • 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 Reno
  • 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 Reno ...

We found 22 communities that share the name Reno.

Within Nevada, the name Reno is unique.

Beyond Nevada, we know of another 22 communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these 22 communities, 21 are located in the United States and one is in Canada.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Tuscaloosa County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Alabama community of Reno [Tuscaloosa County].
    • Alberta
      • This Reno lies 1,143 miles [1,839.5 km]<2> to the north of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
    • Arizona
      • Gila County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Arizona community of Reno [Gila County].
    • Colorado
      • Fremont County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Colorado community of Reno [Fremont County].
    • Georgia
      • Grady County
      • This Reno is located in Grady County and lies 2,078 miles [3,344.2 km]<2> to the east of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Grady County community of Reno.
    • Idaho
      • Clark County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Idaho community of Reno [Clark County].
    • Illinois
      • Bond County
      • This Reno is located in Bond County and lies 1,612 miles [2,594.3 km]<2> to the east of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Bond County community of Reno.
    • Indiana
      • Hendricks County
      • This Reno is located in Hendricks County and lies 1,752 miles [2,819.6 km]<2> to the east of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Hendricks County community of Reno.
    • Iowa
      • Cass County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Iowa community of Reno [Cass County].
    • Kansas
      • Ford County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Kansas community of Reno [Ford County].
      • Leavenworth County
      • This Reno is located in Leavenworth County and lies 1,315 miles [2,116.3 km]<2> to the east of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Leavenworth County community of Reno.
    • Michigan
      • Lake County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Michigan community of Reno [Lake County].
      • Ottawa County
      • This Reno is located in Ottawa County and lies 1,766 miles [2,842.1 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ottawa County community of Reno.
    • Minnesota
      • Houston County
      • This Reno is located in Houston County and lies 1,492 miles [2,401.1 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Houston County community of Reno.
      • Saint Louis County
      • This Reno is located in Saint Louis County and lies 1,487 miles [2,393.1 km] to the east northeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Saint Louis County community of Reno.
    • Missouri
      • Christian County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Missouri community of Reno [Christian County].
    • Montana
      • Big Horn County
      • We found mention of this community, but have little information.<1> For the information that we do have, please visit our profile page for the Montana community of Reno [Big Horn County].
    • Ohio
      • Washington County
      • This Reno is located in Washington County and lies 2,031 miles [3,268.6 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Washington County community of Reno.
    • Pennsylvania
      • Venango County
      • This Reno is located in Venango County and lies 2,088 miles [3,360.3 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Venango County community of Reno.
    • South Dakota
      • Pennington County
      • This Reno is located in Pennington County and lies 885 miles [1,424.3 km]<2> to the east northeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Pennington County community of Reno.
    • Texas
      • Lamar County
      • This Reno is located in Lamar County and lies 1,403 miles [2,257.9 km]<2> to the east of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lamar County community of Reno.
      • Parker County
      • This Reno is located in Parker County and lies 1,314 miles [2,114.7 km] to the east southeast of the Reno that is located in Washoe County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Parker County community of Reno.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Reno ...

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.

  • Golden Valley
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Lemmon Valley
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Martin
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martin have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martin
    • Martin is located in Washoe County
  • Mayberrys ‑ Historic
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mayberrys have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayberrys
    • Mayberrys is located in Washoe County
  • Mogul
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
  • Panther Valley
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
  • Sparks
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Sun Valley
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Vista
    (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vista have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vista
    • Vista is located in Washoe County

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

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Reno and extending to:

  • Carson City, which is the State Capital of Nevada, lies 25 miles [40.2 km]<2> to the south (S). If you could walk a straight line from Reno to Carson City, with an average speed<5> 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.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,266 miles [3,646.8 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take 5 days, a buggy would take 89 days and walking would take 129 days.
  • The shortest distance<6> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,251 miles [11,669.4 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,019 miles [12,905.3 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<8>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 6,059 miles [9,751 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<9>

Footnotes ...

<1>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 Reno 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.
<2>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- Reno) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Reno. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.5358, Longitude: -119.8012    
<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 Reno 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 338.194 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 338.839 degrees.
<9>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 326.543 degrees.