Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Poke Run, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Poke Run and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Poke Run
- 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 Poke Run:
- 40.490345, -79.596711
- 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 Poke Run
- 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 Westmoreland County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Westmoreland County
- Since Poke Run is near Armstrong County and also Allegheny County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Armstrong County
- eBird sighting report for Allegheny 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 Poke Run ...
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.
- Apollo
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Apollo have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Apollo
- Apollo is located in Armstrong County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,507 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Apollo <2>
- Camp Jo-Ann
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Camp Jo-Ann have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Camp Jo-Ann
- Camp Jo-Ann is located in Westmoreland County
- Cherry Lane
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cherry Lane have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cherry Lane
- Cherry Lane is located in Armstrong County
- Export
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- 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>
- Five Points
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Five Points have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Points
- Five Points is located in Westmoreland County
- Franklin
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Franklin is located in Westmoreland County
- Holiday Park
(5 miles [8 km] to the west)- 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
- Oklahoma
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north) - Orchard Hills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchard Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchard Hills
- Orchard Hills is located in Armstrong County
- Plum
(7 miles [11.3 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>
- River View
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for River View have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for River View
- River View is located in Armstrong County
- Slickville
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Slickville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Slickville
- Slickville is located in Westmoreland County
- Trees Mills
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trees Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trees Mills
- Trees Mills is located in Westmoreland County
- Vandergrift
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Vandergrift have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Vandergrift
- Vandergrift is located in Westmoreland County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,832 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Vandergrift <2>
How Far From Poke Run 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 community such as Poke Run to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Poke Run and extending to:
- Greensburg, which is the Seat of Westmoreland County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<3> to the south southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Poke Run to Greensburg, 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 143 miles [230.1 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 174 miles [280 km] to the southeast (SE). Driving would take about three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,935 miles [9,551.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,653 miles [10,707 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,528 miles [7,287.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Poke Run. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Westmoreland County: www.co.westmoreland.pa.us/
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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Poke Run) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Poke Run. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.4903, Longitude: -79.5967 In this case, the coordinates for Poke Run 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 Poke Run 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 309.338 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.329 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.226 degrees. |