Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in West Salem, we use the following websites to find information relevant to West Salem and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for West Salem
- 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 West Salem:
- 44.939009, -123.060930
- 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 West Salem
- 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 Polk County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Polk County
- Since West Salem is near Marion County and also Yamhill County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Marion County
- eBird sighting report for Yamhill 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 West Salem ...
We found four communities that share the name West Salem.
Within Oregon, the name West Salem is unique.
Beyond Oregon, we know of another four communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Illinois
- Edwards County
- This West Salem is located in Edwards County and lies 1,844 miles [2,967.6 km]<1> to the east of the West Salem that is located in Polk County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Edwards County community of West Salem.
- North Carolina
- Forsyth County
- This West Salem is located in Forsyth County and lies 2,300 miles [3,701.5 km]<1> to the east of the West Salem that is located in Polk County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Forsyth County community of West Salem.
- Ohio
- Wayne County
- This West Salem is located in Wayne County and lies 2,065 miles [3,323.3 km]<1> to the east of the West Salem that is located in Polk County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Wayne County community of West Salem.
- Wisconsin
- La Crosse County
- This West Salem is located in La Crosse County and lies 1,568 miles [2,523.5 km]<1> to the east of the West Salem that is located in Polk County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the La Crosse County community of West Salem.
- Illinois
Curious and Interesting Names Near West Salem ...
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.
- Badger Corner
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Badger Corner
- Badger Corner is located in Marion County
- Brush College
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brush College have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brush College
- Brush College is located in Polk County
- Clear Lake
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clear Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clear Lake
- Clear Lake is located in Marion County
- Four Corners
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Four Corners
- Four Corners is located in Marion County
- Fruitland
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east) - Liberty
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south) - Lincoln
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lincoln
- Lincoln is located in Polk County
- Oak Grove
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest) - Pringle
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast) - Rosedale
(5 miles [8 km] to the south) - Sunnyside
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
How Far From West Salem 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 community such as West Salem to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in West Salem and extending to:
- Dallas, which is the Seat of Polk County, lies 12 miles [19.3 km]<1> to the west. If you could walk a straight line from West Salem to Dallas, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take five to six hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take nearly four hours.
- Salem, which is the State Capital of Oregon, lies just to the east (E).
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 2,368 miles [3,810.9 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take 5 days, a buggy would take 93 days and walking would take 135 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,959 miles [11,199.4 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,721 miles [12,425.7 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,834 miles [9,388.9 km] and it lies to the north northeast (NNE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Salem. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Polk County: www.co.polk.or.us/
The official website for State of Oregon: https://www.oregon.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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- West Salem) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Salem. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 44.9390, Longitude: -123.0609 In this case, the coordinates for West Salem have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 West Salem to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 341.336 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 342.838 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 328.402 degrees. |