TOPIC:

I see you guys talking about running out to the 6's etc. Can someone explain this to me?

Thanks

west and east number. To compare 16's would be 5 miles west of 6. Each east and west minute is .5 miles.

Thank you, that makes sense! Appreciate the quick reply.

Addition to what Tmik wrote - it's the middle or "seconds" of the latitude/longitude numbers people are referring to - so other's understand.  Anywhere - when talking minutes of latitude, one minute is equal to one nautical mile - a nautical mile is 6077 feet (instead of 5280 feet in a statute mile) so roughly one mile.  That doesn't change at the equator or in the polar regions. 
However, one minute of longitude is one nautical mile in length only at the earth's equator. Near the North Pole, it's just a few feet and at exactly the North Pole it's zero. 
The Great Lakes, however, are positioned close to halfway from the equator to the pole so each minute is roughly a half mile (either nautical or statute.) 
Just explaining because sometimes it helps to understand the big picture in order to remember how things work.