Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Handsom, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Handsom and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Handsom
- 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 Handsom:
- 36.642434, -77.030663
- 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 Handsom
- 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 Southampton County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Southampton County
- Since Handsom is near Franklin City and also Suffolk City, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Franklin City
- eBird sighting report for Suffolk 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 Handsom ...
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.
- Cross Keys
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cross Keys have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cross Keys
- Cross Keys is located in Southampton County
- Delaware
(Less than 2 miles to the east) - Delaware Park
(Less than 2 miles to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Delaware Park have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Delaware Park
- Delaware Park is located in Southampton County
- Druid ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northwest) - Franklin
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Franklin
- Franklin is located in Franklin City
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,833 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Franklin <2>
- Gum
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the west) - Hunterdale
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunterdale
- Hunterdale is located in Southampton County
- Isaac
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast) - Kingsdale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kingsdale
- Kingsdale is located in Southampton County
- Lees Mill
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east) - Sunbeam
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sunbeam
- Sunbeam is located in Southampton County
- Sweepstakes ‑ Historic
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sweepstakes have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sweepstakes
- Sweepstakes is located in Southampton County
How Far From Handsom 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 Handsom to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Handsom and extending to:
- Courtland, which is the Seat of Southampton County, lies just to the North Northwest.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 65 miles [104.6 km]<3> to the north northwest (NNW). If you could walk a straight line from Handsom 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 about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 155 miles [249.4 km] to the north (N). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,993 miles [9,644.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,688 miles [10,763.3 km] and it lies to the east northeast (ENE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,569 miles [7,353.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Handsom. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Southampton County: www.southamptoncounty.org/
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> | 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 obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Handsom) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Handsom. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 36.6424, Longitude: -77.0307 |
| <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 Handsom 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 308.007 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 303.228 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.551 degrees. |