Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Van Alstyne, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Van Alstyne and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Van Alstyne
- 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 Van Alstyne:
- 33.423366, -96.578065
- 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 Van Alstyne
- 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 Collin County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Collin County
- Since Van Alstyne is near Grayson County and also Fannin County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Grayson County
- eBird sighting report for Fannin 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 Van Alstyne ...
We found one communities that share the name Van Alstyne.
There is one other community in Texas which is also named Van Alstyne.
Beyond Texas.
- Communities Located In Texas ...
- Grayson County
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Grayson County community of Van Alstyne.
- Grayson County
Curious and Interesting Names Near Van Alstyne ...
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.
- Anna
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Anna have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Anna
- Anna is located in Collin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16,945 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Anna <2>
- Cannon
(5 miles [8 km] to the east) - Chambersville
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chambersville have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chambersville
- Chambersville is located in Collin County
- Desert
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east) - Elm View
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest) - Ida
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ida
- Ida is located in Grayson County
- Kelly
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest) - Kentucky Town
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kentucky Town
- Kentucky Town is located in Grayson County
- Mormon Grove ‑ Historic
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mormon Grove have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mormon Grove
- Mormon Grove is located in Grayson County
- Pilot Grove
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pilot Grove
- Pilot Grove is located in Grayson County
- Tom Bean
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tom Bean
- Tom Bean is located in Grayson County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,073 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tom Bean <2>
How Far From Van Alstyne 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 city such as Van Alstyne to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Van Alstyne and extending to:
- McKinney, which is the Seat of Collin County, lies 15 miles [24.1 km]<3> to the south southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Van Alstyne to McKinney, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of a day 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 228 miles [366.9 km] to the south southwest (SSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take nearly four hours, a buggy would take 9 days and walking would take 13 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 1,150 miles [1,850.7 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take over two days, a buggy would take 45 days and walking would take 66 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,942 miles [11,172.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 7,677 miles [12,354.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,557 miles [8,943.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Van Alstyne. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Collin County: www.co.collin.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 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Van Alstyne) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Van Alstyne. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 33.4234, Longitude: -96.5781 |
| <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 Van Alstyne 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 319.874 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 316.489 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 314.486 degrees. |