RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Oklahoma >> Choctaw County >> Swink >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Swink, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Swink 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 Swink:
    • 34.017950, -95.202400
    • 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 Swink
  • 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 Choctaw County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Choctaw County
    • Since Swink is near McCurtain County and also Red River County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
    • Open the eBird sighting report for McCurtain County
    • Open the eBird sighting report for Red River 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 Swink

Communities Also Named Swink ...

We found two communities that are also named Swink.

Within Oklahoma, the name Swink is unique.

Beyond Oklahoma, we know of two communities that are located in the United States.

  • Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
    • Alabama
      • Dallas County
      • This Swink is located in Dallas County and lies 492 miles [791.8 km]<1> to the east southeast of the Swink that is located in Choctaw County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Dallas County community of Swink.
    • Colorado
      • Otero County
      • This Swink is located in Otero County and lies 545 miles [877.1 km]<1> to the west northwest of the Swink that is located in Choctaw County.
      • For more information, please visit our profile page for the Otero County community of Swink.

Curious and Interesting Names Near Swink ...

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.

  • Apple
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
  • Farmers Hill
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Farmers Hill is located in McCurtain County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmers Hill
  • Frogville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)
  • High Hill
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
    • High Hill is located in Choctaw County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Hill
  • Huskey
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Huskey is located in Choctaw County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Huskey
  • Mound Grove
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
    • Mound Grove is located in McCurtain County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mound Grove
  • Plainview
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
    • Plainview is located in McCurtain County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plainview
  • Shoals
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Shoals is located in Choctaw County
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shoals
  • Silver City
    (14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)
    • Silver City is located in Red River County (TX)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver City
  • Slim
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)

How Far From Swink to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a town such as Swink to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

  • Hugo, which is the Seat of Choctaw County, lies 17 miles [27.4 km]<1> to the west. If you could walk a straight line from Swink to Hugo, with an average speed<2> 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.
  • Oklahoma City, which is the State Capital of Oklahoma, lies 164 miles [263.9 km] to the northwest (NW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,061 miles [1,707.5 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take over two days, a buggy would take 42 days and walking would take 61 days.
  • The shortest distance<3> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,859 miles [11,038.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<4>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,593 miles [12,219.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,472 miles [8,806.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>'

Footnotes ...

<1>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Swink) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'.
<2>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.
<3>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 Swink to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Swink. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 34.0179, Longitude: -95.2024    
<4>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 319.026 degrees.
<5>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.571 degrees.
<6>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 313.789 degrees.