Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Dorset, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Dorset and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Dorset
- 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 Dorset:
- 37.468205, -77.805275
- 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 Dorset
- 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 Powhatan County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Powhatan County
- Since Dorset is near Chesterfield County and also Amelia County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Chesterfield County
- eBird sighting report for Amelia 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 Dorset ...
We found six communities that share the name Dorset.
Within Virginia, the name Dorset is unique.
Beyond Virginia, we know of another six communities that are located throughout in the United States and Canada. Of these six communities, five are located in the United States and two are in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Florida
- Minnesota
- Ohio
- Ontario
- This Dorset lies 539 miles [867.4 km]<2> to the north of the Dorset that is located in Powhatan County.
- Pennsylvania
- Vermont
Curious and Interesting Names Near Dorset ...
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.
- Chestnut Oaks
(5 miles [8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Chestnut Oaks have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Chestnut Oaks
- Chestnut Oaks is located in Powhatan County
- Clayville
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest) - Flat Rock
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Goode Crossing
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Goode Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Goode Crossing
- Goode Crossing is located in Powhatan County
- Hallsboro
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east) - Holly Hills
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Holly Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Holly Hills
- Holly Hills is located in Powhatan County
- Masons Corner
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Masons Corner
- Masons Corner is located in Amelia County
- Otterdale
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Otterdale
- Otterdale is located in Chesterfield County
- Plain View
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Plain View have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Plain View
- Plain View is located in Powhatan County
- Skinquarter
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Skinquarter have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Skinquarter
- Skinquarter is located in Chesterfield County
How Far From Dorset 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 Dorset to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Dorset and extending to:
- Powhatan, which is the Seat of Powhatan County, lies just to the Northwest.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 20 miles [32.2 km]<2> to the east northeast (ENE). If you could walk a straight line from Dorset to Richmond, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take just over a day to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of a day.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 107 miles [172.2 km] to the north northeast (NNE). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than two hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 6 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,991 miles [9,641.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,692 miles [10,769.7 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,570 miles [7,354.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Dorset. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Powhatan County: www.co.powhatan.va.us/
The official website for State of Virginia: https://www.virginia.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If we encounter the name of what might be a community, our methodology is to add that name to our Gazetteer as a placeholder. As we find more information about that community, it will be added to our Gazetteer. Just as a reminder: Our definition of a community is rather broad and includes those places (or areas) where several families lived and had a name which identified that place. For example, you might hear somebody say that they are going over to Mile's to see Pete ... Mile's is just a gas station and a couple of homes at the crossroads. While it might not be on the map, everybody in the area knows it by that name. Places of interest include buildings at a crossroad, several families clustered in a hollow or maybe the location of a way station. It also includes places like mines, lumber camps, ferry crossings, etc. The community might still exist, is now gone or only existed for just a short period of time. Also keep in mind that Dorset could have been on the original document by mistake, misspelled, the original/alternate name of a community that we've listed elsewhere or was placed in the wrong county. Sometimes a post office or train station would have a different name than the community where it's located, so two names might be referring to the same community - we're working to straighten it all out. |
| <2> | Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'straight-line' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Dorset) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Dorset. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.4682, Longitude: -77.8053 In this case, the coordinates for Dorset have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <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 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 Dorset 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 308.416 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.82 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.563 degrees. |