Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Backbone, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Backbone and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Backbone
- 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 Backbone:
- 37.773179, -80.155342
- 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 Backbone
- 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 Alleghany County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Alleghany County
- Since Backbone is near Greenbrier County and also Covington City, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Greenbrier County
- eBird sighting report for Covington City
- 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 Backbone ...
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.
- Boiling Spring
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boiling Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Spring
- Boiling Spring is located in Alleghany County
- Crows
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest) - Dickson
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the west) - Fairlawn
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east) - Hematite
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest) - Iron Hill Springs
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iron Hill Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iron Hill Springs
- Iron Hill Springs is located in Alleghany County
- Mapledale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest) - Moss Run
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss Run
- Moss Run is located in Alleghany County
- Potts Creek
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Potts Creek have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Potts Creek
- Potts Creek is located in Alleghany County
- Stonewall
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
How Far From Backbone 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 Backbone to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in Backbone and extending to:
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 149 miles [239.8 km]<2> to the east (E). If you could drive a straight line from Backbone to Richmond, with an average speed<3>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 9 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 185 miles [297.7 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 11 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,078 miles [9,781.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,786 miles [10,921 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,662 miles [7,502.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Backbone. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Alleghany County: www.co.alleghany.va.us/
The official website for State of Virginia: https://www.virginia.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 things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Backbone) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Backbone. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.7732, Longitude: -80.1553 In this case, the coordinates for Backbone 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 Backbone 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 309.786 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.429 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.424 degrees. |