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VA and MD are the only ones with an Eastern and Western Shore
uh.....Florida?????
Florida has an east coast, west coast and a southern coast as well in the panhandle. Technically, FL even has a northern coast if one considers the north side of the lower Keys.
Out of those 3 of which I agreed, I will go one further and say that not only do I think VT is the most scenic state, I think it's probably the most gorgeous state in the nation, insofar as it being practically void of blighted areas. Even their "lower class" areas are charming!
Anyone who has traveled the scenic roads of the east coast knows that they are all quite similar in many ways. It would be impossible for me to decide on which one has the most beauty and I have traveled all of them quite extensively.
So for me and in no order, the most scenic areas of each:
Maine-I love the lake/western mountain regions. Sebago Lake and environs along with the entire coastline is quite spectacular. (Avoid at all costs during the summer though-to much traffic). Baxter State Park and environs along with the entire northern section of the state is beautiful.
New Hampshire- I avoid the areas closer to Boston. To much developement and it takes away from the beauty of the state. Anywhere in or near the mountains is great.
Vermont-I love the entire state except for South Burlington and other suburban areas around Burlington.
Massachusetts-This is another one that I would go with the entire state. Western Mass is quite nice and of course the cape. Boston and it's north shore is great.
Connecticut-Outside of the sprawl is quite nice. I like the Amtrak ride along the shore. I like traveling 7 up to Vermont when not in a hurry.
Rhode Island-Newport
New York-Along the Hudson when not confronted by sprawl. NYC. The Adirondacks, The Finger Lakes, Long Island shore, Lake George.
New Jersey-Cape May; along and near the Delaware Water Gap
Pennsylvania-Some the the prettiest towns I've seen in terms of planning and architecture. Reading, Harrisburg, Lancaster are all nice areas. Once you get out of the sprawl, the entire state is quite beautiful for different reasons: farming, mountains, etc. Not many lakes though. I love Philly.
Maryland-Western Maryland is great. Around Thurmont and the Catoctin Mountains which are pretty close to Baltimore. Northern Baltimore County, Carroll, Harford horse country is very scenic. It has the Chesapeake (go to St. Michaels and environs) and Assateaque Island with the wild ponies is probably my favorite Atlantic beach. Baltimore has some great neighborhoods that rival Annapolis which is another nice town; Ellicott City. Maryland is actually quite lovely when not trapped in it's suburban sprawl (like everywhere else).
Delaware-New Castle; the Brandywine Valley (which also extends into PA.) Rehoboth is one of my favorite seacoast towns.
DC-I like it.
West Virginia-I love the entire state. If I had to pick one for sheer beauty, I think it would be West Virginia. It's gorgeous.
Virginia-Skyline Drive, many of it's towns, Alexandria, the western hills and mountains. Especially fond of the area around Staunton. If ever traveling along the coast, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is a must experience.
North Carolina-The Blue Ridge Parkway. I could spend a life time traveling it, walking it, biking it, exploring it. The best mountain scenery in the east. Asheville. The Cape is nice but not in the summer (Again-to many people/traffic).
South Carolina- Charleston is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to. I love the architecture and the lay of the town.
Georgia-Savannah rivals Charleston for the same reasons. I'm not to familiar with the rest of the state.
Florida-The keys. The beaches along both coasts but I prefer the Gulf. I love the flatness of it for great biking.
So after writing all that, I guess my number one would be West Virginia by a hair and my last would be Delaware but by a hair also. I love them all.
The most scenically diverse east coast state? New York.
You've got gorgeous wine country in the finger lakes, a huge and sufficiently rugged swathe of mountain wilderness in the adirondacks, the most exciting and diverse city in the world (NYC), Niagara Falls, cool little cities like Buffalo or Rochester out west. And the rest of the state is taken over by ridiculously quaint villages surrounded by rolling hills, farms and woodlands. I like vermont as well, though. And all the southern appalachian states (North Carolina, Virginia, etc.)
VA and MD are the only ones with an Eastern and Western Shore, and with the small size of Virginia's, Maryland is really the only true state with an Eastern Shore .
Not true, Massachusetts, has a western shore on the cape and the Islands, and Because NYC is on several islands it has a western shore.
also the Cape and islands are differant that the rest of the state, the pace of life is much slower.
It is really interesting to enter New York from the south (Pennsylvania) and see how the landscape immediately changes. The hills in New York are lower than in Pennsylvania (on average), so they are farmed higher up, which makes for a different visual impact to the landscape. Lots of hilltop farms. There are parts of New York which resemble the scenery along the Yellow Brick Road in the Wizard of Oz. (Those unrealistic, bubble-like hills where Dorothy meets the Scarecrow? You'll find them in New York... coincidentally, where L. Frank Baum was from.)
I am suprised a couple of people said that Maryland is the least scenice state. Right off the bat, Maryland has some mountains, which 2-3 states on the East coast lack completely. For instance, Catoctin Mountain in Maryland is the location of Camp David. This was the vacation camp of President Eisenhower, and has been used by other Presidents ever since.
Keep in mind that the Presidents can easily reach scenic areas in nearby Pennsylvania and the Virginias. So if they choose to retreat to Camp David in Maryland, for both themselves AND their foreign guests, I would say Maryland cannot be that shabby at all.
Beyond that, Maryland seems to me to be more conservation minded than some other states and is building a good park system.
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