Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Rich Patch, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Rich Patch and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Rich Patch
- 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 Rich Patch:
- 37.726845, -79.919530
- 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 Rich Patch
- 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 Alleghany County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Alleghany County
- Since Rich Patch is near Botetourt County and also Covington City, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Botetourt County
- eBird sighting report for Covington 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 Rich Patch ...
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.
- Boiling Spring
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Boiling Spring have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Boiling Spring
- Boiling Spring is located in Alleghany County
- Daggers Springs
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Daggers Springs have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daggers Springs
- Daggers Springs is located in Botetourt County
- Eagle Rock
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Eagle Rock have been provided by the GNIS.<1> 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 <2>
- Fairlawn
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest) - Gala
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Gala
- Gala is located in Botetourt County
- Hooks Mill
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hooks Mill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hooks Mill
- Hooks Mill is located in Alleghany County
- Iron Gate
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast) - Lignite
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest) - Longdale
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast) - Moss Run
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Moss Run
- Moss Run is located in Alleghany County
- Rich Patch Mines
(Less than 2 miles to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rich Patch Mines have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rich Patch Mines
- Rich Patch Mines is located in Alleghany County
- Stonewall
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)
How Far From Rich Patch 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 Rich Patch to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<3> beginning in Rich Patch and extending to:
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 136 miles [218.9 km]<3> to the east (E). If you could drive a straight line from Rich Patch 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 175 miles [281.6 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<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,070 miles [9,768.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,777 miles [10,906.5 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,654 miles [7,489.9 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Rich Patch. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Alleghany County: www.co.alleghany.va.us/
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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Rich Patch) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Rich Patch. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.7268, Longitude: -79.9195 |
| <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 Rich Patch 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 309.647 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.264 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.342 degrees. |