Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Spindletop, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Spindletop and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Spindletop
- 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 Spindletop:
- 30.031324, -94.060733
- 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 Spindletop
- 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 Jefferson County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Jefferson County
- Since Spindletop is near Orange County and also Hardin County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Orange County
- eBird sighting report for Hardin 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 Spindletop ...
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.
- Cheek
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west) - Elizabeth
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west) - Hebert
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south) - Lucas
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the south) - Nederland
(5 miles [8 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Nederland have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nederland
- Nederland is located in Jefferson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 17,184 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Nederland <2>
- Pine Crest
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pine Crest have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pine Crest
- Pine Crest is located in Jefferson County
- Rose City
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Rosedale
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest) - Sunnyside
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest) - Terry
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)
How Far From Spindletop 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 Spindletop to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Spindletop and extending to:
- Beaumont, which is the Seat of Jefferson County, lies just to the Northwest.
- Austin, which is the State Capital of Texas, lies 220 miles [354.1 km]<3> to the west (W). If you could drive a straight line from Spindletop to Austin, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take nearly four hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 13 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 9 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,143 miles [1,839.5 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take over two days, a buggy would take 45 days and walking would take 65 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,021 miles [11,299.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,739 miles [12,454.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,614 miles [9,034.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Spindletop. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Jefferson County: www.co.jefferson.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> | 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Spindletop) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Spindletop. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 30.0313, Longitude: -94.0607 In this case, the coordinates for Spindletop 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 Spindletop 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 317.794 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 313.613 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 313.791 degrees. |