RoadsideThoughts
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Home >> Commonwealth of Pennsylvania >> Westmoreland County >> Camp Jo-Ann >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Camp Jo-Ann, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Camp Jo-Ann and the surrounding area.

  • Weather ...
  • 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 Camp Jo-Ann:
    • 40.508123, -79.680601
    • 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 Camp Jo-Ann
  • 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 Camp Jo-Ann ...

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.

  • Arnold
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Arnold have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Arnold
    • Arnold is located in Westmoreland County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 4,790 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Arnold <2>
  • Barking
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Barking have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Barking
    • Barking is located in Allegheny County
  • Center
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Center have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Center
    • Center is located in Allegheny County
  • Edgecliff
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Edgecliff have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Edgecliff
    • Edgecliff is located in Westmoreland County
  • Export
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Export have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Export
    • Export is located in Westmoreland County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 846 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Export <2>
  • Franklin
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
    • Franklin is located in Westmoreland County
  • Garden City
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Garden City have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Garden City
    • Garden City is located in Allegheny County
  • Holiday Park
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holiday Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holiday Park
    • Holiday Park is located in Allegheny County
  • Leechburg
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Leechburg
    • Leechburg is located in Allegheny County
  • Milltown
    (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Milltown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Milltown
    • Milltown is located in Allegheny County
  • New Texas
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Texas
    • New Texas is located in Allegheny County
  • Plum
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plum have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plum
    • Plum is located in Allegheny County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 26,993 people
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Plum <2>
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Poke Run
      (4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Poke Run have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Poke Run
      • Poke Run is located in Westmoreland County
    • Regency Park
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Regency Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Regency Park
      • Regency Park is located in Allegheny County
    • Unity
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unity
      • Unity is located in Allegheny County
    • Unity Junction
      (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Unity Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Unity Junction
      • Unity Junction is located in Allegheny County
    • Universal
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Universal
      • Universal is located in Allegheny County
    • Valley Camp
      (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Valley Camp have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Valley Camp
      • Valley Camp is located in Westmoreland County

How Far From Camp Jo-Ann 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 Camp Jo-Ann to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Camp Jo-Ann and extending to:

  • Greensburg, which is the Seat of Westmoreland County, lies 15 miles [24.1 km]<3> to the south southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Camp Jo-Ann to Greensburg, with an average speed<4> 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 four to five hours.
  • Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 148 miles [238.2 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 179 miles [288.1 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 11 days.
  • The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,938 miles [9,556.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,655 miles [10,710.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,531 miles [7,291.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>

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 '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- Camp Jo-Ann) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Camp Jo-Ann. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.5081, Longitude: -79.6806       In this case, the coordinates for Camp Jo-Ann have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).
<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 Camp Jo-Ann 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 309.389 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.389 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.257 degrees.