Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > General U.S.
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 09-02-2017, 04:33 PM
 
6 posts, read 7,653 times
Reputation: 15

Advertisements

So I've seen plenty of the threads about which states are the most geographically diverse and the usual answers came up of California, west coast states in general, Texas, Hawaii, Oklahoma, parts of the NE, etc. Size is a factor in this "statewide" discussion and creates unfair advantages (even though I still think some small parts of California are even relatively incredibly geographically diverse despite the state's overall absolute size).

I'd be more interested at this point about which specific areas of the US within a fixed radius (not bound by state borders) are the most geographically diverse? Like areas where within a 3 hour drive in various directions one can visit:

mountains
rivers
deserts
beaches
lakes
forests
grasslands
etc. (criterion can be expanded)

The size of the radius is up to your discretion, but I would recommend keeping it small (start with a 3 hour drive radius) or else the juxtapositions of the different geographic features become less appreciated/accessible if spread out over a larger area.

Obviously, I'd feel the area encompassing Hawaii would win in this regard given its small size yet extreme geographic diversity, but besides Hawaii what other areas come to mind?

Please give specific details as to the location of the region and examples of its geographic diversity.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 09-02-2017, 05:09 PM
 
1,770 posts, read 1,649,958 times
Reputation: 1735
About a 150 mile radius around Minkler California. This encompasses:

Sequoia National Park with the largest trees in the world and the highest point in the lower 48, Mt Whitney
Kings Canyon National Park with one of the deepest canyons in the US and some more of the largest trees
Yosemite National Park with one of the most spectacular glacial valleys found anywhere
Death Valley National Park which is the hottest place on Earth and the lowest elevation in North America
Pinnicles National Park with California condors
Mono Lake with it's bizarre tufa formations
Inyo National Forest with the oldest trees on Earth
Monterrey Bay which is one of the greatest marine ecosystems on the planet home to many of the largest animals on earth
Big Sur and some of the PCH
Some of the snowiest regions of the US
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-02-2017, 06:28 PM
 
57 posts, read 118,129 times
Reputation: 101
The South and West
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-02-2017, 06:46 PM
 
Location: The High Desert
16,000 posts, read 10,563,608 times
Reputation: 31200
If I was allowed to fudge on the rules --- I would draw a line from Puerto Penasco (Sonora) on the Gulf of California to Page, Arizona and take a 50 mile swath on either side of that line. But that would probably be cheating.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-02-2017, 07:18 PM
 
8,773 posts, read 6,702,358 times
Reputation: 8516
Go east of Seattle. A 50-mile radius would encompass everything on the list, as well as sand dunes, glaciers....
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-05-2017, 07:53 PM
 
205 posts, read 247,189 times
Reputation: 260
Default The Census Bureau Definition of the South is the Most Geographically Diverse Section of the lower 48 United States +D.C.

The South (Including the South Atlantic, South West Central, and South East Central), to me, is the most geographically diverse area. Although the west is a close second, because there isn't the subtropical jungle and swamp feel available in the West, and since most of the climate is much drier in the west (excluding Hawaii and Alaska) than in the South, I think the South is the most geographically diverse location in the United States.

The South is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as being Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas

It has mountains, forest, acres and acres of farmland, barren land in West Texas, Coastal Plain, Lower Rockies in West Texas, High Plains in Texas and Oklahoma, Prairie in Oklahoma and Arkansas, The Ozark Plateau in Arkansas, The Ouchita Mountains in Arkansas, The Mississippi Alluvial Plains of Arkansas and Mississippi and Louisiana, Great Plains in Oklahoma and Texas, The Gulf Coastal Plain of Texas and Louisiana and Arkansas and Mississippi and Alabama and Georgia and Florida, The Atlantic Coastal Plains and swamps of Georgia and The Carolinas and Maryland and Delaware and the District of Columbia and Maryland, The Plateau and fall lines of the Piedmont of the South Atlantic, the Appalachians of Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky and West Virginia and the South Atlantic, Middle Tennessee and the Cumberland Plateau of Kentucky and Tennessee and Alabama, and The Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia through the Carolinas and Georgia. And the Valleys, Ridges, and Plateaus of the complex Appalachian system! as well as the Black Prairie and Tennessee Valley in Alabama and Northeast Mississippi.

All a very complex set of different climates, topographies, regions, and geographical anomalies or interesting attributes!

If you include Alaska and Hawaii, then the west takes the cake, but the South is very much unique in its own way and worth noting.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-05-2017, 08:19 PM
 
Location: BMORE!
10,080 posts, read 9,859,013 times
Reputation: 5725
The South is easily the most geographically diverse region in the country.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-05-2017, 08:30 PM
 
Location: "The Dirty Irv" Irving, TX
4,001 posts, read 3,222,946 times
Reputation: 4821
Quote:
Originally Posted by KodeBlue View Post
The South is easily the most geographically diverse region in the country.
LOL no. You can't ski in the south. Seattle or the NW in general is probably the most diverse area. Rain-forests (only ones in lower 48), major mountains, volcanoes, deserts, swamps, canyons, farmland, the pacific, major city all in a few hours.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-05-2017, 08:36 PM
 
Location: "The Dirty Irv" Irving, TX
4,001 posts, read 3,222,946 times
Reputation: 4821
Quote:
Originally Posted by mhays25 View Post
Go east of Seattle. A 50-mile radius would encompass everything on the list, as well as sand dunes, glaciers....
Yes.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 09-05-2017, 10:11 PM
 
1,349 posts, read 1,693,608 times
Reputation: 2391
Quote:
Originally Posted by Iaskwhy View Post
About a 150 mile radius around Minkler California. This encompasses:

Sequoia National Park with the largest trees in the world and the highest point in the lower 48, Mt Whitney
Kings Canyon National Park with one of the deepest canyons in the US and some more of the largest trees
Yosemite National Park with one of the most spectacular glacial valleys found anywhere
Death Valley National Park which is the hottest place on Earth and the lowest elevation in North America
Pinnicles National Park with California condors
Mono Lake with it's bizarre tufa formations
Inyo National Forest with the oldest trees on Earth
Monterrey Bay which is one of the greatest marine ecosystems on the planet home to many of the largest animals on earth
Big Sur and some of the PCH
Some of the snowiest regions of the US
Some variation of this (central California) is the only correct answer.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > General U.S.
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top