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The only part of Iowa that seemed like Minnesota to me was the far northern part of the state, north of Mason City. The rest of the state has a more Illinois feel.
Iowa north of Highway 20 and west of Highway 63 is pretty homogenous, and is very similar to SW Minnesota and the eastern Dakotas. Northern Iowa east of that point (as well as SE Minnesota) is pretty similar to Wisconsin.
I don't think you really get that uniquely Minnesota feeling until you're north and east of I-94. South and west and you have a lot of overlap/homogeneity among Iowa, Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Nebraska. There's almost a region unto itself in there centered around the tallgrass prairie east of the 100th meridian that's a transition between the traditional Midwest and Great Plains. I've attached a rough map of what I'm talking about.
There's no part of Iowa, IMO, that has much in common with the Lakes/Northwoods area that kind of forms the heart of Minnesota's identity. Really, only Wisconsin (and maybe Michigan) have a true corollary.
Last edited by IowanFarmer; 09-14-2023 at 09:13 AM..
And I daresay there's a bit of that from Iowans when it comes to Missouri.
I've definitely heard a lot of shots at Missouri from Iowans, but it always strikes me as more cheeky and good humored, whereas with Minnesotans it feels quite serious. I've seen them react that way to all of their neighboring states though, and that's what spurs my comment about them having a Texas-esque level of civic pride/bordering on arrogance.
Iowa north of Highway 20 and west of Highway 63 is pretty homogenous, and is very similar to SW Minnesota and the eastern Dakotas. Northern Iowa east of that point (as well as SE Minnesota) is pretty similar to Wisconsin.
I don't think you really get that uniquely Minnesota feeling until you're north and east of I-94. South and west and you have a lot of overlap/homogeneity among Iowa, Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Nebraska. There's almost a region unto itself in there centered around the tallgrass prairie east of the 100th meridian that's a transition between the traditional Midwest and Great Plains. I've attached a rough map of what I'm talking about.
There's no part of Iowa, IMO, that has much in common with the Lakes/Northwoods area that kind of forms the heart of Minnesota's identity. Really, only Wisconsin (and maybe Michigan) have a true corollary.
The Lake Country of northern Wisconsin (Vilas and Oneida counties), feels more Minnesotan in landscape than most areas of Minnesota. It's probably because the tree types are similar to what you find in Duluth and the North Shore. They have the exact same activities in the winter, snowmobiling, ice fishing, pond hockey.
I've definitely heard a lot of shots at Missouri from Iowans, but it always strikes me as more cheeky and good humored, whereas with Minnesotans it feels quite serious. I've seen them react that way to all of their neighboring states though, and that's what spurs my comment about them having a Texas-esque level of civic pride/bordering on arrogance.
The big difference between most of rural Iowa and rural Missouri is the massive gulf in median household incomes and poverty rates. Most of rural Iowa is neat and tidy in a typical Midwest way, while rural Missouri is mostly the complete opposite.
I would say Iowa is Minnesota's most similar neighbouring state outside of Wisconsin. (Not counting Michigan, because they only have a water border. But if we counted Michigan, Iowa would be third most similar)
The farmland in much of MN is very similar to Iowa. There's def a lot of commonality.
Also a lot of cross-pollination between the Twin Cities and Des Moines. A lot of people in MN are familiar with Decorah, Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, and Sioux City to a lesser extent.
Far northern MN is more like Canada (Manitoba and western Ontario respectively) than Iowa, thats for sure.
Like IowanFarmer mentioned, Minnesotans do seem to embrace winter more, and MN is better at salting and plowing than Iowa. We just get more snow and cold. Not so much the two places have radically different winters, but enough to notice. We also have a lot more lakes and these lakes become great sources of recreation once they freeze solid.
There's also more Iowans coming to Minnesota for vacation than the other way around. Mall of America, the Twin Cities in general, Duluth, lakes up north. Iowa to most of us is just that state you drive through if you are going somewhere further south (in my case, Texas) or maybe if you got friends/family there you go, but not a typical destination.
I would like to check out Des Moines and Decorah tbh. I do like Iowa in general, its just it can be such a long monotonous stretch on I-35 and its a shame the highway bypasses Des Moines so you don't even see the skyline.
I do notice northern Iowa has a more similar landscape to Minnesota, but even the Des Moines area, you find similar tree species so it can pass for more rural suburbs of the Twin Cities.
Once you get to the part of I-35 where you see tons of wind turbines, it starts to resemble MN more.
I do like Iowa in general, its just it can be such a long monotonous stretch on I-35 and its a shame the highway bypasses Des Moines so you don't even see the skyline.
You can easily take I-235 through Des Moines instead of going around (and rejoin I-35). It's about the same distance. Will give you a more scenic view of the capitol building and downtown.
You can easily take I-235 through Des Moines instead of going around (and rejoin I-35). It's about the same distance. Will give you a more scenic view of the capitol building and downtown.
I will keep that in mind next time we schlep on down to Texas. Anything to break the monotony lol.
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