Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Bessemer, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Bessemer and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Bessemer
- 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 Bessemer:
- 37.650130, -79.818379
- 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 Bessemer
- 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 Botetourt County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Botetourt County
- Since Bessemer is near Alleghany County and also Rockbridge County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Alleghany County
- eBird sighting report for Rockbridge 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 Bessemer ...
We found eleven communities that share the name Bessemer.
Within Virginia, the name Bessemer is unique.
Beyond Virginia, we know of another eleven communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these eleven communities, ten are located in the United States and one is in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Alabama
- Florida
- Michigan
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Ontario
- This Bessemer lies 523 miles [841.7 km]<1> to the north of the Bessemer that is located in Botetourt County.
- Pennsylvania
- Allegheny County
- This Bessemer is located in Allegheny County and lies 189 miles [304.2 km]<1> to the north of the Bessemer that is located in Botetourt County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Allegheny County community of Bessemer.
- Lawrence County
- This Bessemer is located in Lawrence County and lies 232 miles [373.4 km] to the north of the Bessemer that is located in Botetourt County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Lawrence County community of Bessemer.
- Westmoreland County
- This Bessemer is located in Westmoreland County and lies 171 miles [275.2 km] to the north of the Bessemer that is located in Botetourt County.
- For more information, please visit our profile page for the Westmoreland County community of Bessemer.
- West Virginia
- Wyoming
Curious and Interesting Names Near Bessemer ...
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.
- Daggers Springs
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Daggers Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daggers Springs
- Daggers Springs is located in Botetourt County
- Eagle Rock
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Eagle Rock
- Eagle Rock is located in Botetourt County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Eagle Rock <4>
- Flatwoods
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest) - Gala
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gala
- Gala is located in Botetourt County
- Hooks Mill
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hooks Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooks Mill
- Hooks Mill is located in Alleghany County
- Kyles Mills
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kyles Mills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kyles Mills
- Kyles Mills is located in Botetourt County
- Rich Patch
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Patch
- Rich Patch is located in Alleghany County
- Salisbury
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salisbury
- Salisbury is located in Botetourt County
- Salt Petre Cave
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Salt Petre Cave. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<5>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Salt Petre Cave
- Salt Petre Cave is located in Botetourt County
- Salt Petre Cave has also been known as:
- Salt Peter Cave
- Saltpetre
- Springwood
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Springwood
- Springwood is located in Botetourt County
How Far From Bessemer 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 Bessemer to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Bessemer and extending to:
- Fincastle, which is the Seat of Botetourt County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the south southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Bessemer to Fincastle, with an average speed<6> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 130 miles [209.2 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 173 miles [278.4 km] to the east northeast (ENE). Driving would take about three hours, a buggy would take 7 days and walking would take 10 days.
- The shortest distance<7> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,069 miles [9,767.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,776 miles [10,904.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<9>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,652 miles [7,486.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<10>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Bessemer. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Botetourt County: www.co.botetourt.va.us/
The official website for State of Virginia: https://www.virginia.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | 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- Bessemer) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Bessemer. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.6501, Longitude: -79.8184 In this case, the coordinates for Bessemer have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Bessemer, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy. |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <5> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <6> | 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. |
| <7> | 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 Bessemer to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 309.59 degrees. |
| <9> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.186 degrees. |
| <10> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.325 degrees. |