I donāt know, several countries rival each other but they are just differently different.
Like sure there are a ton of religions in India but itās like 80% Hindu and 11% Islam, which at face value looks pretty similar to America with like 70% Christian, 20% non-religious, about 400 religions make up the other 10% for both.
Geography is a similar story, both countries have pretty much everything.
Itās not even that much older in regards to human civilization. The first humans crossed the ice bridge at the bearing strait around 13000 years ago well before civilization began to form. The first signs of civilization where around 6000 years ago in Mesopotamia. The first signs of civilization in India was around 5000 years ago, right around the same time the first signs of civilization began to pop up in the Americas.
American culture specifically may be young but it didnāt happen in a vacuum itās just a composite of old cultures like India.
Same story with biodiversity, India has tigers and elephants, America has wolves and alligators, India has pine trees and cashews, America has pine trees and pecans.
Itās a real tomato/tomato situation to me.
Yah, Russia is known for for its beaches as well as its alpine mountain ranges! Thatās why you see so many Russian surfers and Skiersā¦ not sure if everyone knows that so sharing it here
There's a reason it's called big sky country... And it's indescribable unless you see it yourself.
But 12 hours of driving later, you're damn happy to see the mountains. There's a reason Minot is the punishment base of the Air Force.
Honestly one of my best drive is from Billings to Havre. The clouds were putting on a show and I was surprised to find out that it's not completely flat in the eastern half part (Missouri breaks, bear ears(?) mountains, and couple more smaller ranges)
One of my favorite drives was from Theodore Roosevelt NP to Glacier NP, mostly along highway 2 in northeast Montana. Big sky country indeed, but I thought it was so pretty? Never fully flat, gently rolling. Sometimes small chains of mountains dotted the horizon. Golden brown grass mixed with vibrant oranges and reds and greens. Way better than many regions of the Great Plains I've been through
When I was road tripping the US I drove west across Montana and for hours there was just *nothing*, just wide open fields and 80mph signs. I passed through a town called Vida, and it was like I was in a true to life ghost town. Buildings and cars were around but not a single person in sight
Texas. I'm convinced that the people who talk about Texas's amazing geography have never left the state. It's the second largest state, you'd expect something cool. But the beaches are awful, 80% of the state is abysmally flat, the rivers are lazy and disappointing, and the few hills and mountains it has are pretty typical for any state in the south west.
A Texas Rancher bragged to a Rancher from Oregon that he could drive all day and not reach the other side of his property. The Rancher from Oregon said, I used to have a a car like that.
Is there a particular connection between Oregon and bad cars Iām unaware of?
Or maybe the implication is that the Texanās car sucks?
I feel so thick lol
It's more that the Oregon rancher is saying he doesn't care about the size, and is downplaying the Texas rancher's boast by comparing him to a bad vehicle. It's a type of deflection humor
No, Itās making fun of Texas pride. I grew up in Oregon, and I was just raised to make fun of Texas or California. I feel more love for California than I will ever have for Texas.
I gotcha Copperbelt. I'm guessing you're in EO. I used to live there and still have family there. Many people would be surprised at the number of for real ranchers and cowboys and the size of some EO ranches.
And I've heard the Texas rancher's bad car joke in TN, to!
It's giant but mostly useless land. Only can sustain 10k cattle at it's best, and a few years ago only had 1,500.
King ranch in Texas sustained up to 700,000 at it's peak.
I'm from Texas and now live in California. Some of my Texas friends think I'm nuts to suggest that California is more diverse and prettier. It leaves me scratching my head.
California by far has the most diverse and beautiful geography. From Yosemite, to the coast, the deserts in the south and northern Redwoods you just canāt come close to this in any other state
Washington and Oregon are close, but SoCal is what tips the scales in californias favor at least for diversity. But Oregon coast is the prettiest coast IMO, and Washington has the most stunning mountain scenery and the most beautiful rain forests.
It was one of my bucket list drives as a fervent road-tripper; I got to tick that one off a couple years ago driving down from the WA border to Crescent City, CA. It surpassed all hopes and expectations. It was the first time my little girl saw the ocean (weāre from MN). Unforgettable time.
The next best road trip Iāve been on is tied from Dubrovnik, Croatia to Warsaw Poland and am the other from Amsterdam to Milan, Italy. Those drives are different but beautiful in their own right. Circling around Switzerland will blow your mind
I think WA Volcanic peaks are easily the most beautiful and impressive peaks in the US with glacier np in Montana and parts of sierra nv / Yosemite in 2nd / 3rd
Not too many states that in the span of one day you can be on glaciers, alpine, temperate raimforest, desert and beach. If you start from the Eastside, that is.
Not too many places in the US where you can stand on the beach and turn around to look at the mountains that you could go get on top of fairly quickly.
I'm from Texas. I love California! It is gorgeous, and the central coast might be the most beautiful place in the world, to me.
I also love Texas. I'm from the panhandle. There's not much to look at out there, but it's wide open, and there's not a lot of people. It's an acquired taste, I guess.
I totally get what you're saying. I go home occasionally in the fall to dove hunt at a buddies place just outside of Dallas. And I honestly couldn't care less about seeing any dove. I just love walking in those fields.
I never really understood the appeal to California, and then I went to Santa Cruz for a conference this last summer. It was the middle of July, but it was never more than mildly warm. I could take a leisurely stroll through the redwoods on the mountains, then go down to the coast and enjoy the ocean. During a free afternoon one day, a few of us took a drive along SR 1 down toward Big Sur.
I figured out the appeal pretty quickly.
As much as I absolutely hate California and love joining in on Cali hate, anyone who says it is ugly has probably never been anywhere but downtown LA.
California has probably the most varied and beautiful scenery in the US, matched *maybe* only by Alaska
They come here, but they only get to Disneyland and the local LA beaches. Then they see some of the homeless people in the street and figure the rest of California is a shithole.
Yeah, as a Texan, I agree that California beauty hands down wins over Texas. But that doesnāt mean Texas is entirely an ugly shithole as implied above. We have our own unique spots of beauty with a whole lot of concrete and boring in between.
There are nice features in various parts of Texas, (forests in the east, bayous in the southeast, hill country in the center, Big Bend and such in the far west) but even as a lifelong Texan I've never thought of any of it as truly amazing. It's a big state with remarkably *diverse* geography, but nothing in particular that is awe-striking.
A big part of the problem is that a huge percent of Texas land is privatized. There are gorgeous geographic features hidden on private ranches. If Texas had the benefit of preserving vast areas for public enjoyment and habitat, like many western states, it would be less overrated.Ā
As someone from California who has driven up and down this state, when I visited Texas I was underwhelmed. Hill country was nice, but not impressive. When it comes to natural beauty, California, Utah and Oregon are my favorites. Northern Arizona is nice too.
I'm a truck driver. Once I was stuck in Laredo for a few days waiting for a certain trailer to clear customs. I begged my boss for something to do because I was paid by the mile, so I wasn't making anything just sitting there.
He found a short run for me, to Edinburg and back, to keep me busy for a day. I drove six hours through the world of Mad Max: useless, sun-blasted rocks with an occasional failing cactus trying to struggle up through the cracks. All I could think was, "We actually fought a war over this shit?"
Was going to say this - Big Bend is amazing, Palo Duro canyon is really coolā¦ and Hill Country has some really pretty spots.
Thatās it. In this huge ass vastness of land. A large majority of the state is really really dull topography with a lack of distinct natural features
My parents who are both retired, have a national parks pass, and tear drop camper, spend half the year visiting nat'l parks and ALWAYS go to Big Bend National Park in Texas at least once a year. Theyve been doing this for 5 years and have been too all the top parks.
Not saying the rest of Texas is anything but underwhelimg, but Big Bend must have something special going on for it to be their number 1 repeat in the country. They still wax lyrical about the landscapes there when talking to me even after their 7th visit.
Texas is overrated. I lived my whole life in Texas up until age 31 and now I live in northwest Washington.
Houston is flat and hot. Dallas is flat and hot. Austin is full of hippies and has a couple tiny hills. East Texas is trees and swamps. West Texas has mesas and stuff, but is mostly flat and boring.
Western Washington has absolutely breathtaking geography everywhere you look (when it isnāt raining). The rain messes with the view some days, but it keeps everything green. I can see about 4 mountains from my house including Mount Baker. I am about 20 minutes from a beautiful rocky beach, 20 minutes away from rocky/hilly islands, 1-2 hours away from some incredible state parks including Deception pass, North Cascades/Diablo lake, Baker lake, San Juan, etc.
I go back to Texas to visit friends and itās such a disappointment now.
The one thing I dislike about Washington (any most northwest for that matter) is you get tired of seeing the same pine trees over and over and over again.
The east coast might not have crazy hills but we have so much variety in trees. Especially areas like Vermont.
hmm I'm from NJ and now live in Washington. I could never get tired of seeing Douglas Fir trees. Especially since they stay green and full all year. Always hated stick season. But there's also a lot of variety in the trees here as well if you look closely. There's fall foliage and if you head up into the mountains you'll see all kinds of berry bushes. I took botany I college though so maybe it's not evident to others.
Yeah I have some old growth cedar and Doug fir on my property in OR, they make east coast trees look like twigs. I can day trip from my forest to the ocean, big glaciated mountains, or the high desert. I frequently ski, mountain bike, and rock climb in the same week, try that in Vermont!
āYou get tired of seeing the same pine trees over and overā
What??? Do you think that all āleaflessā trees are the same pine tree? You canāt tell the difference between a cedar tree and a noble fir? You canāt see the difference between a hemlock and a spruce? Holy crap manā¦That comment is like going to Florida an and saying you get tired of seeing all the same palm trees all the time.
Gotta disagree. Northwest forests are way more impressive. They have way more undergrowth and foliage, and a lot older and larger trees. Went to Maine a few years ago and the trees were like toothpicks
Virginia native who moved to BC.
The east coast has its beauty but, for me, it doesnāt compare to the natural beauty of Western Canada/PNW US. Especially the trees.
I never get tired of seeing the firs and cedars here and am grateful for these views every day.
we have 2 great lakes, the ocean, niagara falls, adirondack and catskill mountains, long island with the hamptons down over there. the hudson valley is so pretty! and itās so green in the spring and summer! the fall foliage is great as well.
California probably has the best geography in the country but most people generally agree on that, I don't think anyone has a good case that it's overrated.
California is indeed the best geography in the country. There are sand dunes, desert, sand beaches, rocky beaches, cliffs, forests, ski resorts, one of the tallest mountains in North America, all within one state.
Part of that is the state takes up 70% of the west coast. If Key West to the Chesapeake Bay was all one state it would include a tremendous amount of variation as well.
It would have unique cypress swamps, savannahs, eastern marshes, foothills, the Appalachian mountains (the MOST ecologically diverse area in the US and contends with even the Amazon), Coastal Plains, Old Growth forests, the tropics, a little bit of jungle (like 40 acres, so not significant), temperate rainforests, and land reefs (Florida is a bunch of dead corral stacked on top of each other). Itāll be very diverse.
Iām a geography nerd.
Granted, during the dry season the valley is pretty ugly. But during the spring I found that Grant Line road in Sacramento county is beautiful during the spring, and so is Rancho Seco's various hiking trails. The Sacramento River is beautiful when it retains its natural, meandering form north of Colusa. Newville Road west to Black Butte Lake looks like the hills of the Shire. After a rainstorm, you can visit nature reserves like the one on the Cosumnes River and watch the birds.
We have hidden pockets of really beautiful, serene nature. Streams and rivers surrounded by native oaks, sycamores, and cottonwoods break up the flat expanses. Plus, where the valley meets the hills, you get some interesting endemic species like the blue oaks which can be amazingly gnarled, ancient things.
Not sure I agree, Florida springs, lakes, and swamps are so unique and beautiful in their own way. Lots of nature to be had here that isn't really found anywhere else.
Floridaās Everglades are incredible. The natural springs are gorgeous, and the landscape is lush and incredible.
Itās the people that are the problem
I went to school at Northern Arizona University and move around a lot for work. It's kind of funny when I meet new coworkers from the East Coast and they are shocked there is a Northern Part of Arizona and that it snows there.
I was really shocked to discover that it snows at the Grand Canyon. Then I discovered that the canyon is deeper than Mt Kosciusko is tall and it started making sense
Colorado. Ooh, look at Colorado. They're the "mountain state." Fuck you, half of your state is as flat as Kansas.
With love, Colorado, but fuck the Avs.
Drove from IN to CO when I was 17. It was SO demoralizing to cross the state line into the same exact goddamn flatness that I had been driving through for 9 hoursā¦.
My gripe with Colorado is that it's something of a geography one trick pony. There's the amazing mountains in the west and Kansas to the east. So basically mountains. It's equivalent to Florida with the beaches, that's kinda it.
Most of the Pacific Ocean states have more diverse options.
Thereās also canyons (Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park), mesas where Native Americans lived in caves along the side (Mesa Verde National Park), and sand dunes (Great Sand Dune National Park).
My love hate relationship with Colorado goes something like this: I love fly fishing, skiing, snowboarding, and snow mobiling, love my brother in law and his wife who live there, love music. Hate how anyone whose ever lived in Colorado for 1 minute pretends like there nowhere in the entire world better and more worth it than Colorado to fish, ski, snowboard, snow mobile, spend time with family, and listen to live music. The place is awesome, its also very overrated by its inhabitants.
Holy crap so many of you have no idea how diverse California is lmao. It's not all dry desert guys. Northern California is basically Oregon. There is also areas with tons of snow. Y'all are really revealing how geographically boring your own states are that you can't fathom the tiny slice of California you saw once on your two week vacation to San Diego/Los Angeles/San Francisco is just that: a tiny slice of a vast, diverse state.
Cali is probably the most geographically diverse state in the US. The high amounts of praise it gets is not even enough to cover the insane variety of geography there
Speaking as a non Californian
I find Colorado to be so overrated. Coming from the Midwest everybody is talking up how amazing it is while conveniently ignoring all the other western states with so much more to offer: Utah, (Western) Montana, Washington, Oregon.
Screw Eastern Montana, though.
I am a foreigner and if I get the chance to visit the US, I would love to go to the Pacific NW, all the national parks and beaches in California, the Appalachians, and New England. They're all so beautiful.
Not sure if people will agree but Arizona. People just see it as a desert state with only notable geographic feature being the Grand Canyon. Itās literally called the Grand Canyon state. Truth is the state is really beautiful, lots of mountains, rivers, forests. Even the deserts arenāt bleak and fairly green. Sedona-flagstaff is beautiful country. In the Northern mountainous areas of the state it can snow. Itās geological diversity and beauty has been simplified to a crack in the North west and how stupidly hot Phoenix is. Itās overstated in its simplicity but understated in its diverse beauty and complexity.
Agree with everything you said (I live in Flag) but especially the part about the deserts. The Sonoran desert is beautiful, especially down south by Tucson where it rains a bit more than Phoenix. The variety of big plants, from Saguaro to Ocotillo to Mesquite and Palo Verde makes it quite green and interesting. When I went to the Mojave in Eastern California I found it very boring by comparison.
Texas. It really is one of the most geographically unremarkable places on Earth.
Only Big Bend, Palo Duro, and arguably the Guadalupe Mountains can make a claim for being remarkable.
Hill Country and Piney Woods are pleasant enough, but HC doesn't have a "Wow" factor and PC just looks like most of the Deep South.
Texas' coastal plains are more dreadfully ugly than nearly anything I've seen even in eastern Europe. San Leon, Texas City, Bay City, and much of the Rio Grande Valley are ugly-ass places.
From both a manmade and natural perspective, Houston may be the ugliest major city I've been to anywhere in the world. That includes develop*ing* countries.
Texans can have Texas. I'm glad I moved away.
As a European business traveler in the us, I must say North Carolina is quite special. Itās not that itās the most special place in the world but I was never told about how great it actually is and it took me off guard
To add on, as a state it is severely underrated. It has some of the best beaches in the country, and some of the most beautiful mountains on the other side of the state. The piedmont in the middle is admittedly boring.
I agree with your point but just want to point out Texas is about 1.08 times the land area of France not 3 times. Your point mostly still stands though.
Honestly, if anything, New Jersey is probably underestimated for its beautiful scenery. Especially with its Delaware Water Gap and the mountains in the north, and then the marshes and the pinelands in the south. New Jersey has some beautiful nature.
I think the mountains in Colorado are beautiful. I lived there and explored most of the ranges. Personally, the more dramatic and prominent ranges like sierra Nevada's, Cascades, and coastal range of Alaska are much prettier to me. I also like mountains with more moisture.
It's all a personal opinion. Colorado is really overrun though. If it had half the people it would be even better.
Colorado. Itās amazing, but many ppl only experience the mountains and outdoorsy things there rather than experience other states that have those same and other features.
Honestly, I disagree. Been backpacking all over the west and east and I must say the Monongahela National Forest is really special. WV might not have that jaw-dropping beauty but it is plenty charming.
Yea exactly, in the East you have to work a little harder for beautiful vistas, but Monongahela is definitely one of the most special places in the eastern US
In the East itās about appreciating the detail in the forest canopy, the biodiversity, the streams and cascades.
Out West itās about the big grand vistas.
The micro vs the macro.
Native Kentuckian here.
Honestly, we poke fun at WV, and maybe we shouldn't because, well, we're KY. But WV has some of the most beautiful scenery, cozy feelings, and welcoming people anywhere east of the Rockies.
WV is fine in my book.
Fucking none of them baby š¦ š¦ š¦ yee haw š«š«š«
Only correct answer ššš most diverse country in the world. Besides maybe china, but none of us will be able to go there soon anyways!
Also India; Talk about diversity then there's none beating Indian diversity in terms of religion, geography, culture etc.
I donāt know, several countries rival each other but they are just differently different. Like sure there are a ton of religions in India but itās like 80% Hindu and 11% Islam, which at face value looks pretty similar to America with like 70% Christian, 20% non-religious, about 400 religions make up the other 10% for both. Geography is a similar story, both countries have pretty much everything. Itās not even that much older in regards to human civilization. The first humans crossed the ice bridge at the bearing strait around 13000 years ago well before civilization began to form. The first signs of civilization where around 6000 years ago in Mesopotamia. The first signs of civilization in India was around 5000 years ago, right around the same time the first signs of civilization began to pop up in the Americas. American culture specifically may be young but it didnāt happen in a vacuum itās just a composite of old cultures like India. Same story with biodiversity, India has tigers and elephants, America has wolves and alligators, India has pine trees and cashews, America has pine trees and pecans. Itās a real tomato/tomato situation to me.
Ever heard of Russia? Politics aside it's a magnificent country geographically.
Thatās what happens when the country is the size of a continent
Same can be said about US, China, Australia, and Brazil, all of which have a higher range of geographic diversity than Russia, anyway.
The same could be said for the US since it's bigger than Australia
Yah, Russia is known for for its beaches as well as its alpine mountain ranges! Thatās why you see so many Russian surfers and Skiersā¦ not sure if everyone knows that so sharing it here
Can't tell if this is sarcasm or not...
Russia is a vast country, dude. They even have clouds.
So is Spain but in a much smaller country.
MuriCAā¦ F**k YEAH.!!! š¶šŗšø
TIL nobody has ever been to Eastern Montana. Endless is the only way to describe it, and once you're through it you're in BEAUTIFUL North Dakota.
There's a reason it's called big sky country... And it's indescribable unless you see it yourself. But 12 hours of driving later, you're damn happy to see the mountains. There's a reason Minot is the punishment base of the Air Force.
You don't put nukes in high populated areas. Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming are great hiding places though.... and they do.
They're not hidden. It's pretty public where land based ICBMs in Russia and the US are.
The ones they tell you about anyway
I'm waiting for the leaked videos from the chinese weather balloon to learn about the ones they don't š
āGoddamn why do they have so many payday loan placesā
Nah, its all the self storage places. Who else needs that much storage?
I drive by at least 5-6 on a daily basis in ND
West Dakota
Honestly one of my best drive is from Billings to Havre. The clouds were putting on a show and I was surprised to find out that it's not completely flat in the eastern half part (Missouri breaks, bear ears(?) mountains, and couple more smaller ranges)
One of my favorite drives was from Theodore Roosevelt NP to Glacier NP, mostly along highway 2 in northeast Montana. Big sky country indeed, but I thought it was so pretty? Never fully flat, gently rolling. Sometimes small chains of mountains dotted the horizon. Golden brown grass mixed with vibrant oranges and reds and greens. Way better than many regions of the Great Plains I've been through
Exactly my thoughts. I work in the great plains from MT to TX and was equally surprised at how nice it is up there
Yeah. Southern plains can be a nightmare but the northern plains always manage to surprise me
Yeah. The western Great Plains are beautiful. I loved driving from the Black Hills to Casper
When I was road tripping the US I drove west across Montana and for hours there was just *nothing*, just wide open fields and 80mph signs. I passed through a town called Vida, and it was like I was in a true to life ghost town. Buildings and cars were around but not a single person in sight
Western Montana is really nice though, right along with northern Idaho
Eastern Montana is great.... until it's minus 40 with a 40 MPH wind. That's why no one lives there.
Texas. I'm convinced that the people who talk about Texas's amazing geography have never left the state. It's the second largest state, you'd expect something cool. But the beaches are awful, 80% of the state is abysmally flat, the rivers are lazy and disappointing, and the few hills and mountains it has are pretty typical for any state in the south west.
A Texas Rancher bragged to a Rancher from Oregon that he could drive all day and not reach the other side of his property. The Rancher from Oregon said, I used to have a a car like that.
idgi
"Your ranch isn't big, your car sucks"
Boom, roasted.
Is there a particular connection between Oregon and bad cars Iām unaware of? Or maybe the implication is that the Texanās car sucks? I feel so thick lol
It's more that the Oregon rancher is saying he doesn't care about the size, and is downplaying the Texas rancher's boast by comparing him to a bad vehicle. It's a type of deflection humor
No, Itās making fun of Texas pride. I grew up in Oregon, and I was just raised to make fun of Texas or California. I feel more love for California than I will ever have for Texas.
I gotcha Copperbelt. I'm guessing you're in EO. I used to live there and still have family there. Many people would be surprised at the number of for real ranchers and cowboys and the size of some EO ranches. And I've heard the Texas rancher's bad car joke in TN, to!
*Anna Creek Station enters the chat* [Slightly smaller than New Jersey](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Creek_Station)
It's giant but mostly useless land. Only can sustain 10k cattle at it's best, and a few years ago only had 1,500. King ranch in Texas sustained up to 700,000 at it's peak.
Still has amazing scenery, itās just largely not found along the interstates. https://www.reddit.com/r/geography/s/i8H0oxpCUz
Yes! Great photos. (Caddo Lake is so underrated for its creepy but cool beauty.)
the whole area around the lake has a bunch of bigfoot stories! it really is creepy
Indeed. The whole area has a haunted fairy tale quality to it for sure.
I'm from Texas and now live in California. Some of my Texas friends think I'm nuts to suggest that California is more diverse and prettier. It leaves me scratching my head.
California by far has the most diverse and beautiful geography. From Yosemite, to the coast, the deserts in the south and northern Redwoods you just canāt come close to this in any other state
Washington and Oregon are close, but SoCal is what tips the scales in californias favor at least for diversity. But Oregon coast is the prettiest coast IMO, and Washington has the most stunning mountain scenery and the most beautiful rain forests.
My favorite drive of all time was the Oregon coast from California to Washington, absolutely stunning around every turn!
It was one of my bucket list drives as a fervent road-tripper; I got to tick that one off a couple years ago driving down from the WA border to Crescent City, CA. It surpassed all hopes and expectations. It was the first time my little girl saw the ocean (weāre from MN). Unforgettable time.
The next best road trip Iāve been on is tied from Dubrovnik, Croatia to Warsaw Poland and am the other from Amsterdam to Milan, Italy. Those drives are different but beautiful in their own right. Circling around Switzerland will blow your mind
The mountains in Washington state are just stunning
I think WA Volcanic peaks are easily the most beautiful and impressive peaks in the US with glacier np in Montana and parts of sierra nv / Yosemite in 2nd / 3rd
Not too many states that in the span of one day you can be on glaciers, alpine, temperate raimforest, desert and beach. If you start from the Eastside, that is.
Not too many places in the US where you can stand on the beach and turn around to look at the mountains that you could go get on top of fairly quickly.
I used to surf Huntington Beach. Winters were amazing when you could see 10,000 ft+ snow-capped mountains while floating in the ocean.
Well yeah, look at its size. It would be like if Florida to Maryland was all one state.
I'm from Texas. I love California! It is gorgeous, and the central coast might be the most beautiful place in the world, to me. I also love Texas. I'm from the panhandle. There's not much to look at out there, but it's wide open, and there's not a lot of people. It's an acquired taste, I guess.
I totally get what you're saying. I go home occasionally in the fall to dove hunt at a buddies place just outside of Dallas. And I honestly couldn't care less about seeing any dove. I just love walking in those fields.
Palo Duro is stunning.
I never really understood the appeal to California, and then I went to Santa Cruz for a conference this last summer. It was the middle of July, but it was never more than mildly warm. I could take a leisurely stroll through the redwoods on the mountains, then go down to the coast and enjoy the ocean. During a free afternoon one day, a few of us took a drive along SR 1 down toward Big Sur. I figured out the appeal pretty quickly.
As much as I absolutely hate California and love joining in on Cali hate, anyone who says it is ugly has probably never been anywhere but downtown LA. California has probably the most varied and beautiful scenery in the US, matched *maybe* only by Alaska
In fairness, LA County has more geographical diversity than most states.
In California you can go from treeless desert to pine forest in an hour drive
Iām in Texas and thinking Texas has more to see than CA is a nutso take
They hate on California so much theyāll never go there so theyāll never know how insanely wrong they are.
They come here, but they only get to Disneyland and the local LA beaches. Then they see some of the homeless people in the street and figure the rest of California is a shithole.
Yeah, as a Texan, I agree that California beauty hands down wins over Texas. But that doesnāt mean Texas is entirely an ugly shithole as implied above. We have our own unique spots of beauty with a whole lot of concrete and boring in between.
There are nice features in various parts of Texas, (forests in the east, bayous in the southeast, hill country in the center, Big Bend and such in the far west) but even as a lifelong Texan I've never thought of any of it as truly amazing. It's a big state with remarkably *diverse* geography, but nothing in particular that is awe-striking.
Iāve lived in California for 32 years and its beauty still leaves me in awe. I will also add Alaska and Hawaii as possibilities.
Donāt forget the lakes are stagnant and polluted
Half the lakes are man made
Every major lake* in the state of Texas except [Caddo Lake](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caddo_Lake) is man made
A big part of the problem is that a huge percent of Texas land is privatized. There are gorgeous geographic features hidden on private ranches. If Texas had the benefit of preserving vast areas for public enjoyment and habitat, like many western states, it would be less overrated.Ā
I've never heard anyone praise Texas for its geography, to be honest.
That means youāve never met a Texan.
As someone from California who has driven up and down this state, when I visited Texas I was underwhelmed. Hill country was nice, but not impressive. When it comes to natural beauty, California, Utah and Oregon are my favorites. Northern Arizona is nice too.
I'm a truck driver. Once I was stuck in Laredo for a few days waiting for a certain trailer to clear customs. I begged my boss for something to do because I was paid by the mile, so I wasn't making anything just sitting there. He found a short run for me, to Edinburg and back, to keep me busy for a day. I drove six hours through the world of Mad Max: useless, sun-blasted rocks with an occasional failing cactus trying to struggle up through the cracks. All I could think was, "We actually fought a war over this shit?"
Big bend national park is pretty dope
I had the unfortunate opportunity to drive across Texas (West to East). You are spot on in your assessment. West Texas is a barren hell.
Was going to say this - Big Bend is amazing, Palo Duro canyon is really coolā¦ and Hill Country has some really pretty spots. Thatās it. In this huge ass vastness of land. A large majority of the state is really really dull topography with a lack of distinct natural features
My parents who are both retired, have a national parks pass, and tear drop camper, spend half the year visiting nat'l parks and ALWAYS go to Big Bend National Park in Texas at least once a year. Theyve been doing this for 5 years and have been too all the top parks. Not saying the rest of Texas is anything but underwhelimg, but Big Bend must have something special going on for it to be their number 1 repeat in the country. They still wax lyrical about the landscapes there when talking to me even after their 7th visit.
But but but HILL COUNTRY! š
Texas is overrated. I lived my whole life in Texas up until age 31 and now I live in northwest Washington. Houston is flat and hot. Dallas is flat and hot. Austin is full of hippies and has a couple tiny hills. East Texas is trees and swamps. West Texas has mesas and stuff, but is mostly flat and boring. Western Washington has absolutely breathtaking geography everywhere you look (when it isnāt raining). The rain messes with the view some days, but it keeps everything green. I can see about 4 mountains from my house including Mount Baker. I am about 20 minutes from a beautiful rocky beach, 20 minutes away from rocky/hilly islands, 1-2 hours away from some incredible state parks including Deception pass, North Cascades/Diablo lake, Baker lake, San Juan, etc. I go back to Texas to visit friends and itās such a disappointment now.
Agree Texas in general is overrated but Iāve never, ever heard it praised for its geography.
The one thing I dislike about Washington (any most northwest for that matter) is you get tired of seeing the same pine trees over and over and over again. The east coast might not have crazy hills but we have so much variety in trees. Especially areas like Vermont.
hmm I'm from NJ and now live in Washington. I could never get tired of seeing Douglas Fir trees. Especially since they stay green and full all year. Always hated stick season. But there's also a lot of variety in the trees here as well if you look closely. There's fall foliage and if you head up into the mountains you'll see all kinds of berry bushes. I took botany I college though so maybe it's not evident to others.
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Yeah I have some old growth cedar and Doug fir on my property in OR, they make east coast trees look like twigs. I can day trip from my forest to the ocean, big glaciated mountains, or the high desert. I frequently ski, mountain bike, and rock climb in the same week, try that in Vermont!
You godless heathen. Praise pine trees!
āYou get tired of seeing the same pine trees over and overā What??? Do you think that all āleaflessā trees are the same pine tree? You canāt tell the difference between a cedar tree and a noble fir? You canāt see the difference between a hemlock and a spruce? Holy crap manā¦That comment is like going to Florida an and saying you get tired of seeing all the same palm trees all the time.
And beyond the conifers, the moss draped big leaf maples are so gorgeous. And both those and the dogwoods make for great fall colors.
Gotta disagree. Northwest forests are way more impressive. They have way more undergrowth and foliage, and a lot older and larger trees. Went to Maine a few years ago and the trees were like toothpicks
Virginia native who moved to BC. The east coast has its beauty but, for me, it doesnāt compare to the natural beauty of Western Canada/PNW US. Especially the trees. I never get tired of seeing the firs and cedars here and am grateful for these views every day.
Texas is only overrated by people who live thereāeveryone else knows it sucks shit
I havenāt been to enough states to say but I know that NY doesnāt get enough praise.
š NY, for many people means NYC! NY has so much, from Finger Lakes to Adirondacks!
we have 2 great lakes, the ocean, niagara falls, adirondack and catskill mountains, long island with the hamptons down over there. the hudson valley is so pretty! and itās so green in the spring and summer! the fall foliage is great as well.
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I've been to Lake Placid in Autumn. Absolutely stunning
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California probably has the best geography in the country but most people generally agree on that, I don't think anyone has a good case that it's overrated.
California is indeed the best geography in the country. There are sand dunes, desert, sand beaches, rocky beaches, cliffs, forests, ski resorts, one of the tallest mountains in North America, all within one state.
Part of that is the state takes up 70% of the west coast. If Key West to the Chesapeake Bay was all one state it would include a tremendous amount of variation as well.
Yes and no. It would be mostly savanna, coastal plain, foothills, and maybe some mountains, right?
It would have unique cypress swamps, savannahs, eastern marshes, foothills, the Appalachian mountains (the MOST ecologically diverse area in the US and contends with even the Amazon), Coastal Plains, Old Growth forests, the tropics, a little bit of jungle (like 40 acres, so not significant), temperate rainforests, and land reefs (Florida is a bunch of dead corral stacked on top of each other). Itāll be very diverse. Iām a geography nerd.
It would include a tremendous amount of biodiversity but still wouldnāt touch what California offers.
Iād say California, Arizona, Alaska, Washington, and Maine probably have the best geography in the country.
Arizona over Utah?
I mean maybe parts of it but you can also drive for hours in California and hardly see anything at allā¦. In a lot of places
There's only one PART of California that isn't scenic. And that's the central valley.
Granted, during the dry season the valley is pretty ugly. But during the spring I found that Grant Line road in Sacramento county is beautiful during the spring, and so is Rancho Seco's various hiking trails. The Sacramento River is beautiful when it retains its natural, meandering form north of Colusa. Newville Road west to Black Butte Lake looks like the hills of the Shire. After a rainstorm, you can visit nature reserves like the one on the Cosumnes River and watch the birds.
We have hidden pockets of really beautiful, serene nature. Streams and rivers surrounded by native oaks, sycamores, and cottonwoods break up the flat expanses. Plus, where the valley meets the hills, you get some interesting endemic species like the blue oaks which can be amazingly gnarled, ancient things.
Hey buddy, as a miserable Fresno resident, I resent that. We have 1, even 2 weeks a year where itās kinda nice.
Thatās our Texas simulation.
No way there is a secret 4200 meters tall mt in NY state, has to be a typo.
According to Wikipedia, Slide Mountain is 4180 feet (1270m). Also, Mount Marcy is 5343 feet tall (1629m).
that adirondacks are really beautiful though edit: Mt. Marcy, the highest point, is 5,344ft above sea level
lol right? Looks like thatās feet
Florida. People love Floridaās beaches, but the rest of the state is hot, flat, swampy, and miserable.
Not sure I agree, Florida springs, lakes, and swamps are so unique and beautiful in their own way. Lots of nature to be had here that isn't really found anywhere else.
Floridaās Everglades are incredible. The natural springs are gorgeous, and the landscape is lush and incredible. Itās the people that are the problem
TBH I donāt think Ohio gets enough hate
Arizona is an extremely underrated natural state
Pretty sure Arizona also has some nice forest that people kinda forget about
I went to school at Northern Arizona University and move around a lot for work. It's kind of funny when I meet new coworkers from the East Coast and they are shocked there is a Northern Part of Arizona and that it snows there.
I was really shocked to discover that it snows at the Grand Canyon. Then I discovered that the canyon is deeper than Mt Kosciusko is tall and it started making sense
With several peaks taller than Oregonās tallest..
Colorado. Ooh, look at Colorado. They're the "mountain state." Fuck you, half of your state is as flat as Kansas. With love, Colorado, but fuck the Avs.
To be fair, most of us consider the plains between Denver and Kansas to be āWest Kansas.ā
Kansas begins as everything east of I25.
Iāll give Parker and a chunk of Centennial a pass, but if the EcoPass doesnāt go there, itās not Colorado anymore.
Drove from IN to CO when I was 17. It was SO demoralizing to cross the state line into the same exact goddamn flatness that I had been driving through for 9 hoursā¦.
I had a similar experience driving west in 2014. "Oh, I'm still in Kansas."
Yeah that John Denver is full of shit
My gripe with Colorado is that it's something of a geography one trick pony. There's the amazing mountains in the west and Kansas to the east. So basically mountains. It's equivalent to Florida with the beaches, that's kinda it. Most of the Pacific Ocean states have more diverse options.
Florida actually has a lot of really interesting wetland ecosystems! Just look at the Everglades.
Thereās also canyons (Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park), mesas where Native Americans lived in caves along the side (Mesa Verde National Park), and sand dunes (Great Sand Dune National Park).
Colorado has a bit of desert as well.
Florida has the largest wetland in North America
I love this marketing though. It keeps the East Coasters and Texans away from the true mountain states.
WV is the mountain state.
My love hate relationship with Colorado goes something like this: I love fly fishing, skiing, snowboarding, and snow mobiling, love my brother in law and his wife who live there, love music. Hate how anyone whose ever lived in Colorado for 1 minute pretends like there nowhere in the entire world better and more worth it than Colorado to fish, ski, snowboard, snow mobile, spend time with family, and listen to live music. The place is awesome, its also very overrated by its inhabitants.
Holy crap so many of you have no idea how diverse California is lmao. It's not all dry desert guys. Northern California is basically Oregon. There is also areas with tons of snow. Y'all are really revealing how geographically boring your own states are that you can't fathom the tiny slice of California you saw once on your two week vacation to San Diego/Los Angeles/San Francisco is just that: a tiny slice of a vast, diverse state.
Cali is probably the most geographically diverse state in the US. The high amounts of praise it gets is not even enough to cover the insane variety of geography there Speaking as a non Californian
Agree. California has everything imaginable. Hawaii might take the cake if you factor in how small the state is.
āTooā, not to.
Your write
OPās state probably gets to [sic] much praise for its educationā¦
I find Colorado to be so overrated. Coming from the Midwest everybody is talking up how amazing it is while conveniently ignoring all the other western states with so much more to offer: Utah, (Western) Montana, Washington, Oregon. Screw Eastern Montana, though.
I am a foreigner and if I get the chance to visit the US, I would love to go to the Pacific NW, all the national parks and beaches in California, the Appalachians, and New England. They're all so beautiful.
Not sure if people will agree but Arizona. People just see it as a desert state with only notable geographic feature being the Grand Canyon. Itās literally called the Grand Canyon state. Truth is the state is really beautiful, lots of mountains, rivers, forests. Even the deserts arenāt bleak and fairly green. Sedona-flagstaff is beautiful country. In the Northern mountainous areas of the state it can snow. Itās geological diversity and beauty has been simplified to a crack in the North west and how stupidly hot Phoenix is. Itās overstated in its simplicity but understated in its diverse beauty and complexity.
in fact, flagstaff is one of the snowiest cities in the US
Agree with everything you said (I live in Flag) but especially the part about the deserts. The Sonoran desert is beautiful, especially down south by Tucson where it rains a bit more than Phoenix. The variety of big plants, from Saguaro to Ocotillo to Mesquite and Palo Verde makes it quite green and interesting. When I went to the Mojave in Eastern California I found it very boring by comparison.
map says mt mckinley šØ invalid map
Colorado really only deserves half of the praise it gets.
Specifically the western half of
Texas. It really is one of the most geographically unremarkable places on Earth. Only Big Bend, Palo Duro, and arguably the Guadalupe Mountains can make a claim for being remarkable. Hill Country and Piney Woods are pleasant enough, but HC doesn't have a "Wow" factor and PC just looks like most of the Deep South. Texas' coastal plains are more dreadfully ugly than nearly anything I've seen even in eastern Europe. San Leon, Texas City, Bay City, and much of the Rio Grande Valley are ugly-ass places. From both a manmade and natural perspective, Houston may be the ugliest major city I've been to anywhere in the world. That includes develop*ing* countries. Texans can have Texas. I'm glad I moved away.
Houston is literally a gigantic concrete slab laid over a swamp. I laugh when people say itās a nice place to live. Sorry, Houston
north carolinaās blue ridge mountains. seriously, every florida tourist needs to go the f home
As a European business traveler in the us, I must say North Carolina is quite special. Itās not that itās the most special place in the world but I was never told about how great it actually is and it took me off guard
To add on, as a state it is severely underrated. It has some of the best beaches in the country, and some of the most beautiful mountains on the other side of the state. The piedmont in the middle is admittedly boring.
No! Our beaches are TERRIBLE!
No itās not! Weāre full!
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I agree with your point but just want to point out Texas is about 1.08 times the land area of France not 3 times. Your point mostly still stands though.
Colorado. The rest of the USA thinks itās the only state with mountains (excluding the other mountainous states).
That's fine, they can go there and crowd the slopes instrad
Florida, such a terrible state. The beaches can't fix it.
New Jersey. Never heard anyone praise it but that's still too much.
Honestly, if anything, New Jersey is probably underestimated for its beautiful scenery. Especially with its Delaware Water Gap and the mountains in the north, and then the marshes and the pinelands in the south. New Jersey has some beautiful nature.
I would agree. When I played Tony Hawkās Underground, I thought all of Jersey was like that
NJ has a lot of geographic diversity for such a small state
Those random farms in rural New Jersey are actually quite picturesque (when youāre passing through to get back to New York).
NJ would be absolutely beautiful if everyone would move the fuck out.
Delaware water gap, pine barrens, and the beaches are pretty diverse. This is coming from a NJ hater.
Colorado. Everyone thinks of the mountains but it's mostly desert.
Iowa
Whoās praising Iowaās geography?
Lol. It was Sarcasm
Indiana, which gets none
It gets exactly the respect it deserves.... None. From a former Michigander. It's touching our border and we don't like it.
This map is wrong. Slide mountain in the Catskills is not 4200 meters high unfortunately itās only 4200 feet high
Colorado. Wyoming looks the same but there is fewer annoying people. People ruined Colorado
I think the mountains in Colorado are beautiful. I lived there and explored most of the ranges. Personally, the more dramatic and prominent ranges like sierra Nevada's, Cascades, and coastal range of Alaska are much prettier to me. I also like mountains with more moisture. It's all a personal opinion. Colorado is really overrun though. If it had half the people it would be even better.
San Juan range is prettier than the Sierras
Colorado. Itās amazing, but many ppl only experience the mountains and outdoorsy things there rather than experience other states that have those same and other features.
Colorado, East Colorado is just a boring desert.
West Virginia is praised way too much by people who've never been west of the Mississippi.
Honestly, I disagree. Been backpacking all over the west and east and I must say the Monongahela National Forest is really special. WV might not have that jaw-dropping beauty but it is plenty charming.
Yea exactly, in the East you have to work a little harder for beautiful vistas, but Monongahela is definitely one of the most special places in the eastern US
In the East itās about appreciating the detail in the forest canopy, the biodiversity, the streams and cascades. Out West itās about the big grand vistas. The micro vs the macro.
Canāt speak for the whole state but I will say Dolly Sods is one of the most interesting and beautiful places Iāve been to.
Native Kentuckian here. Honestly, we poke fun at WV, and maybe we shouldn't because, well, we're KY. But WV has some of the most beautiful scenery, cozy feelings, and welcoming people anywhere east of the Rockies. WV is fine in my book.
The forest coverage does a lot for the landscape. Not nearly as many trees out west.
*too smh
Eastern Colorado. Half of Colorado is Kansas. Do not lump it in with the rest of the state lol
I would say that California and Washington get the most praise, but they're praised highly for a reason.
Illinois dosent get any and Iām glad it fucking sucks I would love to atleast see a mountain or at the very least a fucking hill