Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Metcalf Gap, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Metcalf Gap and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Metcalf Gap
- 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 Metcalf Gap:
- 32.709849, -98.441442
- 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 Metcalf Gap
- 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 Palo Pinto County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Palo Pinto County
- Since Metcalf Gap is near Stephens County and also Erath County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Stephens County
- eBird sighting report for Erath 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 Metcalf Gap ...
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.
- Brad
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest) - Bullock
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest) - Coalville
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast) - Gordon
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon
- Gordon is located in Palo Pinto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 492 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Gordon <2>
- Gordon Junction
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Gordon Junction have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gordon Junction
- Gordon Junction is located in Palo Pinto County
- Ivan
(20 miles [32.2 km] to the northwest) - Lone Camp
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east) - Mingus
(12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mingus have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mingus
- Mingus is located in Palo Pinto County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 256 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mingus <2>
- Necessity
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Necessity
- Necessity is located in Stephens County
How Far From Metcalf Gap 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 Metcalf Gap to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Metcalf Gap and extending to:
- Palo Pinto, which is the Seat of Palo Pinto County, lies 9 miles [14.5 km]<3> to the east northeast. If you could walk a straight line from Metcalf Gap to Palo Pinto, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Austin, which is the State Capital of Texas, lies 173 miles [278.4 km] to the south southeast (SSE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take about three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,268 miles [2,040.6 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take about three full days, a buggy would take 50 days and walking would take 72 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,049 miles [11,344.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,787 miles [12,532 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,668 miles [9,121.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Metcalf Gap. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of Texas: https://texas.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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Metcalf Gap) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Metcalf Gap. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 32.7098, Longitude: -98.4414 In this case, the coordinates for Metcalf Gap 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 Metcalf Gap 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 321.041 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 317.772 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 315.411 degrees. |