Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Port Ben, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Port Ben and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Port Ben
- 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 Port Ben:
- 41.749686, -74.348502
- 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 Port Ben
- 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 Ulster County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Ulster County
- Since Port Ben is near Sullivan County and also Orange County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Sullivan County
- eBird sighting report for Orange 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
Curious and Interesting Names Near Port Ben ...
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.
- Accord
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Accord have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Accord
- Accord is located in Ulster County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Accord <2>
- Cherrytown
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cherrytown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherrytown
- Cherrytown is located in Ulster County
- Ellenville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ellenville
- Ellenville is located in Ulster County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,006 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Ellenville <2>
- Granite
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Greenfield Park
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Greenfield Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Greenfield Park
- Greenfield Park is located in Ulster County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Greenfield Park <2>
- Honk Hill
(Less than 2 miles to the west) - Lackawack
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest) - Pine Bush
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast) - Potterville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Potterville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potterville
- Potterville is located in Ulster County
- Spring Glen
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spring Glen
- Spring Glen is located in Ulster County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Spring Glen <2>
- Tabasco
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
How Far From Port Ben 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 Port Ben to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Port Ben and extending to:
- Kingston, which is the Seat of Ulster County, lies 21 miles [33.8 km]<3> to the northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Port Ben to Kingston, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
- Albany, which is the State Capital of New York, lies 69 miles [111 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take about three full days and walking would take three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 242 miles [389.5 km] to the southwest (SW). Driving would take nearly four hours, a buggy would take 10 days and walking would take 14 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,666 miles [9,118.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,377 miles [10,262.8 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,253 miles [6,844.5 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Port Ben. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Ulster County: www.co.ulster.ny.us/
The official website for State of New York: https://www.ny.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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. |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | 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- Port Ben) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Port Ben. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.7497, Longitude: -74.3485 |
| <4> | 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. |
| <5> | 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 Port Ben to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 306.034 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 301.789 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 302.346 degrees. |