Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Flat Iron, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Flat Iron and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Flat Iron
- 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 Flat Iron:
- 38.147909, -76.921080
- 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 Flat Iron
- 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 Westmoreland County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Westmoreland County
- Since Flat Iron is near Richmond County and also Essex County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Richmond County
- eBird sighting report for Essex 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 Flat Iron ...
We found two communities that share the name Flat Iron.
Within Virginia, the name Flat Iron is unique.
Beyond Virginia, we know of another two communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Indiana
- Ohio
Curious and Interesting Names Near Flat Iron ...
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.
- Chance
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest) - China Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for China Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for China Hill
- China Hill is located in Richmond County
- Harts ‑ Historic
(Less than 2 miles to the south) - Leesville
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west) - Lukes Island ‑ Historic
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lukes Island have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lukes Island
- Lukes Island is located in Richmond County
- Mount Pleasant
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mount Pleasant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mount Pleasant
- Mount Pleasant is located in Essex County
- Newland
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the south) - Oak Grove
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Oak Grove
- Oak Grove is located in Westmoreland County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Oak Grove <3>
- Oak Row
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
How Far From Flat Iron to ...
We spend a lot of time looking through Gazetteers, Almanacs & Directories that were published in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Many of the Gazetteers include the distance from a community such as Flat Iron to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Flat Iron and extending to:
- Montross, which is the Seat of Westmoreland County, lies just to the Southeast.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 50 miles [80.5 km]<1> to the southwest (SW). If you could walk a straight line from Flat Iron to Richmond, with an average speed<4> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of three days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of two days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 52 miles [83.7 km] to the north (N). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than an hour, a buggy would take over two days and walking would take most of three days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,924 miles [9,533.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,626 miles [10,663.5 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,504 miles [7,248.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Flat Iron. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Westmoreland County: www.co.westmoreland.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 'straight-line' (or point-to-point) distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Flat Iron) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Flat Iron. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 38.1479, Longitude: -76.9211 In this case, the coordinates for Flat Iron have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <2> | 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. |
| <3> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <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 Flat Iron 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 307.867 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.298 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 304.952 degrees. |