Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in West Briar, we use the following websites to find information relevant to West Briar and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for West Briar
- 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 West Briar:
- 37.487919, -79.132525
- 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 West Briar
- 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 Amherst County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Amherst County
- Since West Briar is near Lynchburg City and also Bedford County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Lynchburg City
- eBird sighting report for Bedford 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
Curious and Interesting Names Near West Briar ...
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.
- Coolwell
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast) - Daniels Hill
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Daniels Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Daniels Hill
- Daniels Hill is located in Lynchburg City
- Five Forks
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Five Forks have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Forks
- Five Forks is located in Amherst County
- Great Oaks
(Less than 2 miles to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Great Oaks have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Great Oaks
- Great Oaks is located in Amherst County
- Ivanhoe Forest
(Less than 2 miles to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ivanhoe Forest have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ivanhoe Forest
- Ivanhoe Forest is located in Amherst County
- Lakeview
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south) - Martins Shop
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martins Shop have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martins Shop
- Martins Shop is located in Amherst County
- Martins Store
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Martins Store have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Martins Store
- Martins Store is located in Amherst County
- Merry Moor
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Merry Moor have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Merry Moor
- Merry Moor is located in Amherst County
- Old Stage Run
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Old Stage Run have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Old Stage Run
- Old Stage Run is located in Amherst County
- Peakland
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest) - Prices Store
(Less than 2 miles to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Prices Store have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Prices Store
- Prices Store is located in Amherst County
- Sandy Bottom
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sandy Bottom have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sandy Bottom
- Sandy Bottom is located in Amherst County
- Viking Fiord
(2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Viking Fiord have been provided by the GNIS.<1> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Viking Fiord
- Viking Fiord is located in Amherst County
How Far From West Briar 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 West Briar to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance<2> beginning in West Briar and extending to:
- Amherst, which is the Seat of Amherst County, lies just to the North Northeast.
- Richmond, which is the State Capital of Virginia, lies 93 miles [149.7 km]<2> to the east (E). If you could drive a straight line from West Briar to Richmond, with an average speed<3>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take less than two hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 6 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take most of three days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 149 miles [239.8 km] to the northeast (NE). Driving would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 9 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,047 miles [9,731.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,751 miles [10,864.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,629 miles [7,449.7 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for West Briar. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for Amherst County: www.countyofamherst.com/
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> | 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- West Briar) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in West Briar. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 37.4879, Longitude: -79.1325 In this case, the coordinates for West Briar have been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). |
| <3> | 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. |
| <4> | 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 West Briar to the Middle East to be East and South, the Great Circle Route actually lies to the North and East. |
| <5> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Jerusalem is 309.19 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 304.706 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.097 degrees. |