Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Ephrata, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Ephrata and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Ephrata
- 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 Ephrata:
- 40.17966, -76.178815
- 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 Ephrata
- 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 Lancaster County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Lancaster County
- Since Ephrata is near Bedford County and also Berks County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Bedford County
- eBird sighting report for Berks 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 Ephrata ...
We found one communities that share the name Ephrata.
Within Pennsylvania, the name Ephrata is unique.
Beyond Pennsylvania, there is another community also named Ephrata in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Ephrata ...
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.
- Bareville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bareville
- Bareville is located in Lancaster County
- Brickerville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brickerville
- Brickerville is located in Lancaster County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Brickerville <2>
- Clay
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clay
- Clay is located in Lancaster County
- Farmersville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Farmersville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Farmersville
- Farmersville is located in Lancaster County
- Fivepointville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fivepointville have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fivepointville
- Fivepointville is located in Lancaster County
- Frysville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Halfville
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Hopeland
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hopeland
- Hopeland is located in Lancaster County
- Lincoln
(Less than 2 miles to the northwest) - New Holland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for New Holland
- New Holland is located in Lancaster County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,547 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for New Holland <2>
- Red Run
(5 miles [8 km] to the east) - Speedwell
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the west) - Weaverland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Weaverland have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Weaverland
- Weaverland is located in Lancaster County
How Far From Ephrata 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 Ephrata to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Ephrata and extending to:
- Lancaster, which is the Seat of Lancaster County, lies 11 miles [17.7 km]<1> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Ephrata to Lancaster, with an average speed<4> 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.
- Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 37 miles [59.5 km] to the west northwest (WNW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take just about two full days and walking would take over two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 99 miles [159.3 km] to the south southwest (SSW). Driving would take less than two hours, a buggy would take three full days and walking would take 6 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,807 miles [9,345.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,516 miles [10,486.5 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,392 miles [7,068.2 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Ephrata: www.ephrataboro.org/
The official website for Lancaster County: www.co.lancaster.pa.us/
The official website for State of Pennsylvania: https://www.pa.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- Ephrata) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Ephrata. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.1797, Longitude: -76.1788 |
| <2> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <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 Ephrata 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 307.287 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 302.955 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 303.837 degrees. |