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Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Platte Colony, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Platte Colony and the surrounding area.
- 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 Platte Colony:
- 43.469721, -99.125926
- 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.
- Open the Heavens-Above website centered on Platte Colony
- 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 Charles Mix County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- Open the eBird sighting report for Charles Mix County
- Since Platte Colony is near Brule County and also Gregory County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- Open the eBird sighting report for Brule County
- Open the eBird sighting report for Gregory 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:
- Open the Waymark.com report for Platte Colony
Curious and Interesting Names Near Platte Colony ...
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.
- Bonesteel
(28 miles [45.1 km] to the south)
- Carlock
(30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)
- Carlock is located in Gregory County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Carlock
- Chamberlain
(25 miles [40.2 km] to the northwest)
- Eagle
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
- Eagle is located in Brule County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle
- Estimated population in 2014: 17 people
- Grandview
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)
- Grandview is located in Brule County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Grandview
- Gregory
(22 miles [35.4 km] to the southwest)
- Lucas
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
- Lucas is located in Gregory County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lucas
- Lyonville
(29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
- Lyonville is located in Brule County
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyonville
- Estimated population in 2014: 49 people
- New Holland
(26 miles [41.8 km] to the east)
How Far From Platte Colony 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 Platte Colony to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Platte Colony and extending to:
- Lake Andes, which is the Seat of Charles Mix County, lies 36 miles [57.9 km]<2> to the southeast. If you could walk a straight line from Platte Colony to Lake Andes, with an average speed<3> 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.
- Pierre, which is the State Capital of South Dakota, lies 86 miles [138.4 km] to the northwest (NW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take most of three days and walking would take 5 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,186 miles [1,908.7 km] to the east (E). Driving would take about three full days, a buggy would take 47 days and walking would take 68 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,487 miles [10,439.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,247 miles [11,662.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,170 miles [8,320.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>'
Footnotes ...
| <1> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <2> | 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- Platte Colony) to Point B. In other words: 'As the crow flies'. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 Platte Colony to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Platte Colony. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 43.4697, Longitude: -99.1259 In this case, the coordinates for Platte Colony have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 322.467 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 320.744 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 314.198 degrees. |
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