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.
- 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:
- 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:
- 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 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) - Bixby
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bixby
- Bixby is located in Cameron County
- Bluetown
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluetown
- Bluetown is located in Cameron County
- Bluetown has also been known as:
- Blue Town
- Bluetown Colonia
- Elizabeth
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north) - High Land
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north) - Lyons
(5 miles [8 km] to the west) - Mercedes
(5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mercedes
- Mercedes is located in Hidalgo County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 16,598 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mercedes <2>
- Nancy
(5 miles [8 km] to the north) - Sunrise
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north) - Windsong Village
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Windsong Village have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Windsong Village
- Windsong Village is located in Cameron County
- Windsong Village has also been known as:
- Windsong Village Colonia
How Far From Zacatal 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 Zacatal to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Zacatal and extending to:
- Edinburg, which is the Seat of Hidalgo County, lies 23 miles [37 km]<3> to the northwest. If you could walk a straight line from Zacatal to Edinburg, with an average speed<4> 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<5> 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).<6>
- 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).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 5,971 miles [9,609.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Zacatal. 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> | 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' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Zacatal) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Zacatal. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 26.0834, Longitude: -97.8703 In this case, the coordinates for Zacatal 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 Zacatal 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 319.567 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 315.192 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 315.631 degrees. |