RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> Commonwealth of Pennsylvania >> Indiana County >> Shelocta >> Tidbits & TriviaIndex...

Outdoor Activities ...

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

When in Shelocta, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Shelocta 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 Shelocta:
    • 40.656269, -79.297640
    • 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 Shelocta
  • 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 Shelocta ...

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.

  • Advance
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Advance have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Advance
    • Advance is located in Indiana County
  • Brick Church
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Brick Church have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Brick Church
    • Brick Church is located in Armstrong County
  • Chambersville
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
  • Chestnut Grove
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chestnut Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Grove
    • Chestnut Grove is located in Indiana County
  • Chevy Chase Heights
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chevy Chase Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chevy Chase Heights
    • Chevy Chase Heights is located in Indiana County
  • Coal Run
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coal Run have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coal Run
    • Coal Run is located in Indiana County
  • Creekside
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Creekside have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Creekside
    • Creekside is located in Indiana County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 288 people
  • Crete
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crete have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crete
    • Crete is located in Indiana County
  • Elders Ridge
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Elders Ridge have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elders Ridge
    • Elders Ridge is located in Indiana County
  • Five Points
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
    • 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 Indiana County
  • Fowler Heights
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fowler Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fowler Heights
    • Fowler Heights is located in Indiana County
  • Gastown
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gastown have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gastown
    • Gastown is located in Armstrong County
  • Continue List   (6 more) ...
    • Grandview
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Grandview have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
      • Grandview is located in Indiana County
    • Idaho
      (2 miles [3.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Idaho have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Idaho
      • Idaho is located in Armstrong County
    • Indiana
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
    • Pleasant Hill
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
      • Pleasant Hill is located in Indiana County
    • Shady Plain
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shady Plain have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shady Plain
      • Shady Plain is located in Armstrong County
    • Top
      (8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Top have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Top
      • Top is located in Armstrong County

How Far From Shelocta 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 Shelocta to various places of note, such as the White House.

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

  • Indiana, which is the Seat of Indiana County, lies just to the East Southeast.
  • Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 129 miles [207.6 km]<3> to the east (E). If you could drive a straight line from Shelocta to Harrisburg, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 8 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 5 days.
  • The White House (Washington, DC) is 170 miles [273.6 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 5,916 miles [9,520.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
  • The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,633 miles [10,674.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
  • The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,508 miles [7,254.9 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 '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- Shelocta) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Shelocta. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.6563, Longitude: -79.2976    
<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 Shelocta 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 309.145 degrees.
<7>The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.135 degrees.
<8>The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.029 degrees.