Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Shanks, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Shanks and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Shanks
- 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 Shanks:
- 39.314267, -78.687793
- 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 Shanks
- 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 Hampshire County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Hampshire County
- Since Shanks is near Mineral County and also Hardy County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Mineral County
- eBird sighting report for Hardy 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 Shanks ...
We found one communities that share the name Shanks.
Within West Virginia, the name Shanks is unique.
Beyond West Virginia, there is another community also named Shanks in Canada.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
- Quebec
- This Shanks lies 534 miles [859.4 km]<1> to the northeast of the Shanks that is located in Hampshire County.
- Quebec
Curious and Interesting Names Near Shanks ...
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.
- Creekvale
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northeast) - Frenchburg
(Less than 2 miles to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Frenchburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Frenchburg
- Frenchburg is located in Hampshire County
- Grace
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the north) - Headsville
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the northwest)- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Headsville. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Headsville
- Headsville is located in Mineral County
- Junction
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the west)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Junction
- Junction is located in Hampshire County
- Kirby
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the south) - Mechanicsburg
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mechanicsburg have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mechanicsburg
- Mechanicsburg is located in Hampshire County
- Pancake
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southwest) - Points
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Points
- Points is located in Hampshire County
- Raven Rocks
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Raven Rocks have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Raven Rocks
- Raven Rocks is located in Hampshire County
- Ridgedale
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the north) - Sector
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest) - Three Churches
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the north)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Three Churches
- Three Churches is located in Hampshire County
How Far From Shanks 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 Shanks to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Shanks and extending to:
- Romney, which is the Seat of Hampshire County, lies just to the West Northwest.
- Charleston, which is the State Capital of West Virginia, lies 171 miles [275.2 km]<1> to the west southwest (WSW). If you could drive a straight line from Shanks to Charleston, with an average speed<4>of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, it would take about three hours to make the trip. A comfortable walk of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour would take 10 days. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take 7 days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 93 miles [149.7 km] to the east southeast (ESE). Driving would take less than two hours, a buggy would take most of three days and walking would take 6 days.
- The shortest distance<5> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 5,949 miles [9,574 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,660 miles [10,718.2 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,535 miles [7,298.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<8>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Shanks. 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' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line drawn from Point A (ie- Shanks) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Shanks. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.3143, Longitude: -78.6878 In this case, the coordinates for Shanks 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> | An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace. |
| <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 Shanks 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 308.848 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 304.592 degrees. |
| <8> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 305.26 degrees. |