Outdoor Activities ...
As we travel, we like to pursue some of our interests (such as astronomy and bird watching).
When in Slab, we use the following websites to find information relevant to Slab and the surrounding area.
- Weather ...
- Before heading outdoors, you should check the weather:
- The National Weather Service forecast for Slab
- 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 Slab:
- 39.128972, -80.976498
- 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 Slab
- 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 Ritchie County as the starting point when you click on the link below:
- eBird sighting report for Ritchie County
- Since Slab is near Gilmer County and also Doddridge County, we have provided a link to their eBird sighting reports:
- eBird sighting report for Gilmer County
- eBird sighting report for Doddridge 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 Slab ...
We found one communities that share the name Slab.
Within West Virginia, the name Slab is unique.
Beyond West Virginia, there is another community also named Slab in the United States.
- Communities Elsewhere In North America ...
Curious and Interesting Names Near Slab ...
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 House
(5 miles [8 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Burnt House
- Burnt House is located in Ritchie County
- Five Forks
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Five Forks have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Five Forks
- Five Forks is located in Ritchie County
- Hazelgreen
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hazelgreen have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hazelgreen
- Hazelgreen is located in Ritchie County
- Iris ‑ Historic
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the southwest) - Joy
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the northeast) - Long Run
(3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest) - Racket
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the south) - Riddle ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the north) - Star Settlement ‑ Historic
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Star Settlement have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Star Settlement
- Star Settlement is located in Ritchie County
How Far From Slab 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 Slab to various places of note, such as the White House.
With a nod to our favorite Gazetteers, the straight-line distance beginning in Slab and extending to:
- Harrisville, which is the Seat of Ritchie County, lies just to the Northwest.
- Charleston, which is the State Capital of West Virginia, lies 64 miles [103 km]<1> to the southwest (SW). If you could walk a straight line from Slab to Charleston, with an average speed<3> of 2.2 miles [3.5 km] per hour, it would take most of three days to make the trip. A horse and buggy averaging 3.2 miles [5.1 km] per hour would take about three full days.
- The White House (Washington, DC) is 211 miles [339.6 km] to the east (E). Driving, with an average speed of 63 miles [101.4 km] per hour, would take a little over three hours, a buggy would take 9 days and walking would take 12 days.
- The shortest distance<4> to Jerusalem (specifically the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock) is 6,051 miles [9,738.1 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<5>
- The distance to the Great Mosque of Mecca (specifically the Ka'bah - or Kaaba ) is 6,767 miles [10,890.4 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<6>
- The distance to Saint Peter's Basilica (The Vatican) is 4,642 miles [7,470.6 km] and it lies to the northeast (NE).<7>
Off-the-Road Links ...
Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Slab. 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 '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- Slab) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Slab. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 39.1290, Longitude: -80.9765 In this case, the coordinates for Slab 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 Slab 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 310.242 degrees. |
| <6> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to Mecca is 306.151 degrees. |
| <7> | The calculated bearing (or angle) to the Vatican is 306.321 degrees. |