Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Shafer, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Shafer and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Shafer
- 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 Shafer:
- 39.219273, -79.567835
- 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 Shafer
- 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 Tucker County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Tucker County
- Since Shafer is near Preston County and also Garrett County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Preston County
- eBird sighting report for Garrett 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 Shafer ...
We found one communities that share the name Shafer.
Within West Virginia, the name Shafer is unique.
Beyond West Virginia, there is another community also named Shafer in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Shafer ...
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.
- Breedlove ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast) - Erwin
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northwest) - Horse Shoe Run
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Horse Shoe Run have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Horse Shoe Run
- Horse Shoe Run is located in Preston County
- Lead Mine
(Less than 2 miles to the southwest) - Location
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the west) - Pierce
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the southeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pierce
- Pierce is located in Tucker County
- Pleasant Vale
(5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Vale have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Vale
- Pleasant Vale is located in Tucker County
- Sell
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north) - Silver Lake
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Silver Lake have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Silver Lake
- Silver Lake is located in Preston County
How Far From Shafer 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 Shafer to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Shafer and extending to:
- Parsons, which is the Seat of Tucker County, lies 10 miles [16.1 km]<1> to the southwest. If you could walk a straight line from Shafer to Parsons, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take four to five hours to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take a little over three hours.
- Charleston, which is the State Capital of West Virginia, lies 126 miles [202.8 km] to the west southwest (WSW). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 5 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 137 miles [220.5 km] to the east (E). Driving would take less than three hours, a buggy would take 6 days and walking would take 8 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,990 miles [9,640 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,702 miles [10,785.8 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,578 miles [7,367.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Shafer. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.
The official website for State of West Virginia: https://www.wv.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 from Point A (ie- Shafer) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Shafer. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.2193, Longitude: -79.5678 In this case, the coordinates for Shafer 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 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 Shafer 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 309.383 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 305.186 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.676 degrees. |