Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Swatara, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Swatara and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Swatara
- 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 Swatara:
- 40.655089, -76.354675
- 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 Swatara
- 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 Schuylkill County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Schuylkill County
- Since Swatara is near Luzerne County and also Northumberland County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Luzerne County
- eBird sighting report for Northumberland 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 Swatara ...
We found two communities that share the name Swatara.
There is one other community in Pennsylvania which is also named Swatara.
Beyond Pennsylvania, there is another community also named Swatara in the United States.
- Communities Located In Pennsylvania ...
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Swatara ...
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.
- Buck Run
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - De Turksville
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for De Turksville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for De Turksville
- De Turksville is located in Schuylkill County
- Echo Valley
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Echo Valley
- Echo Valley is located in Schuylkill County
- Forestville
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Forestville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Forestville
- Forestville is located in Schuylkill County
- Fountain
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fountain
- Fountain is located in Schuylkill County
- Glen Carbon
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Glen Carbon have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Glen Carbon
- Glen Carbon is located in Schuylkill County
- Gordon
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
- Gordon is located in Schuylkill County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 721 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gordon <3>
- Jonestown
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast) - Mabel
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest) - Marlin
(5 miles [8 km] to the east) - Middle Creek ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Middle Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Middle Creek
- Middle Creek is located in Schuylkill County
- Minersville
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Minersville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Minersville
- Minersville is located in Schuylkill County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,133 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Minersville <3>
- Continue List (4 more) ...
- Mount Pleasant
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Pleasant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Mount Pleasant is located in Schuylkill County
- Paradise
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Ravine
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ravine
- Ravine is located in Schuylkill County
- Seltzer
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Seltzer
- Seltzer is located in Schuylkill County
- Mount Pleasant
How Far From Swatara 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 Swatara to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Swatara and extending to:
- Pottsville, which is the Seat of Schuylkill County, lies just to the East Northeast.
- Harrisburg, which is the State Capital of Pennsylvania, lies 37 miles [59.5 km]<1> to the southwest (SW). If you could walk a straight line from Swatara to Harrisburg, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take over two days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take just about two full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 126 miles [202.8 km] to the south southwest (SSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,795 miles [9,326.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,506 miles [10,470.4 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,381 miles [7,050.5 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Swatara. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Schuylkill County: www.co.schuylkill.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 '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- Swatara) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Swatara. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 40.6551, Longitude: -76.3547 In this case, the coordinates for Swatara have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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. |
| <3> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Swatara 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 307.353 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.104 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 303.717 degrees. |