Outdoor Activities ...

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

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

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

• 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 Rensselaer:
  • 42.644524, -73.734842
  • 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 Rensselaer

• 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 Rensselaer County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
  • eBird sighting report for Rensselaer County
  • Since Rensselaer is near Albany County and also Saratoga County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
  • eBird sighting report for Albany County
  • eBird sighting report for Saratoga 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 Rensselaer ...

We found two communities that share the name Rensselaer.

Within New York, the name Rensselaer is unique.

Beyond New York, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.

• Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
  • Indiana
    • Jasper County
    • This Rensselaer is located in Jasper County and lies 699 miles [1,124.9 km]<1> to the west of the Rensselaer that is located in Rensselaer County.
    • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Jasper County community of Rensselaer.
  • Missouri
    • Ralls County
    • This Rensselaer is located in Ralls County and lies 946 miles [1,522.4 km]<1> to the west of the Rensselaer that is located in Rensselaer County.
    • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Ralls County community of Rensselaer.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Rensselaer ...

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.

• Beaver Dam
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Beaver Dam have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Beaver Dam
  • Beaver Dam is located in Albany County
• Best
  (5 miles [8 km] to the east)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Best
  • Best is located in Rensselaer County
• Cedar Hill
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cedar Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cedar Hill
  • Cedar Hill is located in Albany County
• Eagle Mills
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Mills
  • Eagle Mills is located in Rensselaer County
• Green Island
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Green Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Green Island
  • Green Island is located in Albany County
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,879 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Green Island <3>
• Luther
  (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Luther
  • Luther is located in Rensselaer County
• Maple Grove
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Maple Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Maple Grove
  • Maple Grove is located in Rensselaer County
• Mountain View
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mountain View have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mountain View
  • Mountain View is located in Rensselaer County
• New Scotland
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Scotland
  • New Scotland is located in Albany County
• Normansville
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Normansville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Normansville
  • Normansville is located in Albany County
• Shakers
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shakers have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shakers
  • Shakers is located in Albany County
• Stony Point
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Stony Point have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stony Point
  • Stony Point is located in Rensselaer County
• Unionville
  (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Unionville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unionville
  • Unionville is located in Albany County
• Van Allen Park
  (Less than 2 miles to the northeast)
  • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Van Allen Park have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Van Allen Park
  • Van Allen Park is located in Rensselaer County

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

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

• Troy, which is the Seat of Rensselaer County, lies just to the North Northeast.
• Albany, which is the State Capital of New York, lies just to the west northwest (WNW).
• The White House (Washington, DC) is 310 miles [498.9 km]<1> to the southwest (SW). If you could drive a straight line from Rensselaer to White House, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 18 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 13 days.
• The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,604 miles [9,018.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
• The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,318 miles [10,167.8 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
• The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,193 miles [6,748 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>

Off-the-Road Links ...

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rensselaer. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for Rensselaer County: www.rensco.com/

The official website for State of New York: https://www.ny.gov/