Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Distant, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Distant and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Distant
- 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 Distant:
- 40.969510, -79.356708
- 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 Distant
- 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 Armstrong County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Armstrong County
- Since Distant is near Clarion County and also Jefferson County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Clarion County
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson 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 Distant ...
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.
- Climax
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest) - Cottage Hill
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cottage Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cottage Hill
- Cottage Hill is located in Clarion County
- Deanville
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Deanville
- Deanville is located in Armstrong County
- Dee
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest) - Diamond
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest) - Frostburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north) - Hooks
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest) - Mayport
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mayport have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mayport
- Mayport is located in Clarion County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mayport <2>
- Rockville
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Slabtown
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Spaces Corners
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Spaces Corners have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Spaces Corners
- Spaces Corners is located in Clarion County
- Squirrel Hill
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Squirrel Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Squirrel Hill
- Squirrel Hill is located in Clarion County
- Tidal
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Wildcat
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)
How Far From Distant 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 Distant to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Distant and extending to:
- Kittanning, which is the Seat of Armstrong County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<3> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Distant to Kittanning, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take 6 hours 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 138 miles [222.1 km] to the east southeast (ESE). 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 8 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 188 miles [302.6 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 11 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,904 miles [9,501.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,623 miles [10,658.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,499 miles [7,240.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Distant. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Pennsylvania: https://www.pa.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 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Distant) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Distant. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.9695, Longitude: -79.3567 In this case, the coordinates for Distant 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 Distant 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 309.162 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.203 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.938 degrees. |