Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in South Donna, we use the following websites to find information relevant to South Donna and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for South Donna
- 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 South Donna:
- 26.128409, -98.049172
- 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 South Donna
- 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 Hidalgo County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Hidalgo County
- Since South Donna is near Cameron County and also Willacy County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Cameron County
- eBird sighting report for Willacy 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 South Donna ...
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.
- Citrus Retreat
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Citrus Retreat have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Citrus Retreat
- Citrus Retreat is located in Hidalgo County
- Citrus Retreat has also been known as:
- Citrus Retreat Colonia
- Clark
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest) - Delta Court
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Delta Court have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delta Court
- Delta Court is located in Hidalgo County
- Delta Court has also been known as:
- Delta Court Colonia
- Flora
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast) - High Point
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for High Point have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Point
- High Point is located in Hidalgo County
- High Point has also been known as:
- High Point Colonia
- Lunar Heights
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lunar Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lunar Heights
- Lunar Heights is located in Hidalgo County
- Lunar Heights has also been known as:
- Lunar Heights Colonia
- Lyons
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast) - Rosedale Heights
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rosedale Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rosedale Heights
- Rosedale Heights is located in Hidalgo County
- Rosedale Heights has also been known as:
- Rosedale Heights Colonia
- Scissors
(Less than 2 miles to the north) - Sun Grove Park
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sun Grove Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sun Grove Park
- Sun Grove Park is located in Hidalgo County
- Sun Grove Park has also been known as:
- Sun Grove Park Colonia
How Far From South Donna 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 South Donna to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in South Donna and extending to:
- Edinburg, which is the Seat of Hidalgo County, lies 13 miles [20.9 km]<2> to the north northwest. If you could walk a straight line from South Donna to Edinburg, with an average speed<3> 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.
- Austin, which is the State Capital of Texas, lies 286 miles [460.3 km] to the north (N). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take four to five hours, a buggy would take 12 days and walking would take 17 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,501 miles [2,415.6 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take most of three days, a buggy would take 59 days and walking would take 86 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,384 miles [11,883.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,101 miles [13,037.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,976 miles [9,617.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for South Donna. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Hidalgo County: www.co.hidalgo.tx.us/
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> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' (or 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- South Donna) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in South Donna. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 26.1284, Longitude: -98.0492 In this case, the coordinates for South Donna have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 South Donna to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 319.692 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.345 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 315.701 degrees. |