Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Helm, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Helm and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Helm
- 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 Helm:
- 37.079583, -79.947535
- 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 Helm
- 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 Franklin County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Franklin County
- Since Helm is near Roanoke County and also Roanoke City, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Roanoke County
- eBird sighting report for Roanoke 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
Communities Also Named Helm ...
We found six communities that share the name Helm.
Within Virginia, the name Helm is unique.
Beyond Virginia, we know of another six communities that are located throughout in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- California
- Illinois
- Kentucky
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Utah
Curious and Interesting Names Near Helm ...
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.
- Burnt Chimney
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt Chimney
- Burnt Chimney is located in Franklin County
- Clearbrook
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Clearbrook have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Clearbrook
- Clearbrook is located in Roanoke County
- Crescent Heights
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Crescent Heights have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Crescent Heights
- Crescent Heights is located in Roanoke County
- Hay Run
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Henry Fork
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Henry Fork have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Henry Fork
- Henry Fork is located in Franklin County
- Homeland Hills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homeland Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homeland Hills
- Homeland Hills is located in Roanoke County
- Hunting Hills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hunting Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hunting Hills
- Hunting Hills is located in Roanoke County
- Meadowlark
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Meadowlark have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Meadowlark
- Meadowlark is located in Roanoke County
- Narrows
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north) - Red Valley
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Red Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Red Valley
- Red Valley is located in Franklin County
- Rocky Mount
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rocky Mount
- Rocky Mount is located in Franklin County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 4,712 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rocky Mount <3>
- Scenic Hills
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Scenic Hills have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Scenic Hills
- Scenic Hills is located in Roanoke County
- Woods Crossing
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Woods Crossing have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Woods Crossing
- Woods Crossing is located in Roanoke County
How Far From Helm 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 Helm to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Helm and extending to:
- Rocky Mount, which is the Seat of Franklin County, lies just to the South Southeast.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 141 miles [226.9 km]<1> to the east northeast (ENE). If you could drive a straight line from Helm to Richmond, with an average speed<4>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 8 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 6 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 202 miles [325.1 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 8 days and walking would take 12 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,100 miles [9,817 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,804 miles [10,950 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,681 miles [7,533.3 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Helm. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Franklin County: www.franklincountyva.org/
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' distance. A straight line distance ignores obstructions like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Helm) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Helm. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.0796, Longitude: -79.9475 In this case, the coordinates for Helm 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 Helm 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 309.68 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.205 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.568 degrees. |