Outdoor Activities ...

As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).

When in Zacatal, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Zacatal and the surrounding area.

• Weather ...
  • Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
  • The National Weather Service forecast for Zacatal

• 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 Zacatal:
  • 26.083410, -97.870276
  • 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 Zacatal

• 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:
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Hidalgo County
  • Since Zacatal is near Cameron County and also Willacy County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
  • Open the eBird sighting report for Cameron County
  • Open the 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:
  • Open the Waymark.com report for Zacatal

Curious and Interesting Names Near Zacatal ...

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.

• Alto Real
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Alto Real is located in Cameron County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Alto Real
  • Alto Real has also been known as:
  • Alto Real Colonia
• Bixby
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Bixby is located in Cameron County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bixby
• Bluetown
  (3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)
  • Bluetown is located in Cameron County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluetown
  • Bluetown has also been known as:
  • Blue Town
  • Bluetown Colonia
• Elizabeth
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)
  • Elizabeth is located in Hidalgo County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Elizabeth
  • Elizabeth has also been known as:
  • Elizabeth Colonia
• High Land
  (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • High Land is located in Hidalgo County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for High Land
  • High Land has also been known as:
  • High Land Colonia
• Lyons
  (5 miles [8 km] to the west)
  • Lyons is located in Hidalgo County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lyons
  • Lyons has also been known as:
  • Lyons Colonia
• Mercedes
  (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Mercedes is located in Hidalgo County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercedes
  • Population from the 2020 Census: 16,598 people
  • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mercedes <1>
• Nancy
  (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
  • Nancy is located in Cameron County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Nancy
  • Nancy has also been known as:
  • Nancy Colonia
• Sunrise
  (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Sunrise is located in Hidalgo County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunrise
  • Sunrise has also been known as:
  • Sunrise Colonia
• Windsong Village
  (6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Windsong Village is located in Cameron County
  • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsong Village
  • Windsong Village has also been known as:
  • Windsong Village Colonia

How Far From Zacatal to ...

We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Zacatal to various places of note, such as the White House.

With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Zacatal and extending to:

• Edinburg, which is the Seat of Hidalgo County, lies 23 miles [37 km]<2> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Zacatal to Edinburg, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just about two full days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
• Austin, which is the State Capital of Texas, lies 288 miles [463.5 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 1,495 miles [2,406 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take most of three days, a buggy would take 59 days and walking would take 85 days.
• The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 7,379 miles [11,875.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
• The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 8,095 miles [13,027.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
• The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,971 miles [9,609.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>'