# Geographical Oddities **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 17, 2007, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391 "2007-06-17T22:22:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/21 "2007-06-17T23:47:29Z")
I remember reading that certain long-established E-W lines for state boundaries are in some cases a bit off from modern surveying methods using GPS - I’m guessing it might be states like New Mexico or others in the West or Southwest? Does this cause problems for boundary disputes at some level, or how bad does it have to be? 100 yards? ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/22 "2007-06-17T23:48:23Z")
Atlanta is closer to [Chicago](http://www.indo.com/cgi-bin/dist?place1=Atlanta%2C+GA&place2=Chicago%2C+IL) than to [Miami](http://www.indo.com/cgi-bin/dist?place1=Atlanta%2C+GA&place2=Miami%2C+FL). ---
**Author:** ![ThisSpaceForRent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisspaceforrent/32/345_2.png) [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/23 "2007-06-17T23:51:11Z")
Kaskaskia Illinois is on the West side of the Mississippi River… ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/24 "2007-06-17T23:51:15Z")
When I was travelling to NYC from Dublin the first time I was amazed to see land below me for a significant chunk of the second half of the journey. I surmised it must be Canada but it still seemed strange to me. I imagined that the plane would fly over Western Ireland and then across the Atlantic approaching NYC from the east and then landing. I forgot the earth is round! ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/25 "2007-06-18T00:04:37Z")
[QUOTE=An Gadaí] When I was travelling to NYC from Dublin the first time I was amazed to see land below me for a significant chunk of the second half of the journey. I surmised it must be Canada but it still seemed strange to me. I imagined that the plane would fly over Western Ireland and then across the Atlantic approaching NYC from the east and then landing. I forgot the earth is round! [/QUOTE] It never fails to fool us. When we came to Los Angeles from Copenhagen we arrived at LA from the north. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/26 "2007-06-18T00:14:58Z")
What major U.S. city is directly north of which large Canadian city? Detroit, Mi. Winsor, On. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/27 "2007-06-18T00:25:00Z")
One from Brazil - Recife is closer to west Africa than to parts of the eastern Brazilian state of Acre. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/28 "2007-06-18T00:34:49Z")
I know, I misspelled Windsor! ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/29 "2007-06-18T01:22:43Z")
There are parts of the netherlands inside parts of Belgium inside the Netherlands [http://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith//baarle.htm](http://ontology.buffalo.edu/smith//baarle.htm) There are parts of the “lower” forty-eight of the US that you can get to by land only through Canada. Point Roberts, WA: [Point Roberts, Washington - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_Roberts) Northwest Angle, MN [Northwest Angle - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northwest_angle) The latter is the northernmost point in the lower forty-eight Alburgh VT > **[Alburgh (town), Vermont](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alburg%2C_VT)** > > Alburgh (formerly Alburg) is a town in Grand Isle County, Vermont, United States, founded in 1781 by Ira Allen. The population was 2,106 at the 2020 United States Census. Alburgh is on the Alburgh Tongue, a peninsula extending from Canada into Lake Champlain, and lies on the only road-based route across Lake Champlain to New York state north of Addison, Vermont. > The original name of the town, "Alburgh", was changed to "Alburg" in 1891 by recommendation of the United States Board on Geographic ... Province Point VT > **[Lake Champlain](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Champlain)** > > Lake Champlain (/ʃæmˈpleɪn/ sham-PLAYN; French: Lac Champlain) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the US states of New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. > The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of Clinton County and Essex County. Most of this area is part of the Adirondack Park. There are recreational facilities in the park and along the relatively undeveloped coastline of the lak... and vice versa: St Regis Quebec [http://www.cnwl.igs.net/~hmi/mapsr.html](http://www.cnwl.igs.net/~hmi/mapsr.html) There is an integral part of France located in the Western Hemisphere > **[Live Casino Online - IDN Poker Slot Rtp & Sbobet Online Indonesia](https://st-pierre-et-miquelon.com/english)** > > Judi Live Casino Online Paling Banyak Menguntungkan Bagi Bettor Pemula Banyak dari bettor pemula bertanya kepada tim layanan konsumen kami, apakah memungkinkan bagi mereka untuk The location of Chicago was originally in what would hav ebecome teh state of Wisconsin (maybe but definitely not teh state of Illinois. In fact the original northern boundaries of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois were to be colinear and farther south then they are now. The Northern Peninsula of Michigan was not to belong to Michigan > **[Toledo War](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toledo_War)** > > The Toledo War (1835–36), also known as the Michigan–Ohio War or the Ohio–Michigan War, was a boundary dispute between the U.S. state of Ohio and the adjoining territory of Michigan over what is now known as the Toledo Strip. Control of the mouth of the Maumee River and the inland shipping opportunities it represented, and the good farmland to the west were seen by both parties as valuable economic assets. > Poor geographical understanding of the Great Lakes helped produce conflicting state and ... Jungholz in Austria touches the rest of Austria at only a single point. > **[Jungholz](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jungholz)** > > Jungholz (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}German pronunciation: \[ˈjʊŋhɔlt͡s\] ⓘ) is a village in the district of Reutte in the Austrian state of Tyrol that is only accessible via Germany. The lack of a road connection to anywhere else in Austria led to Jungholz being included in the German customs area before Austria joined the EU in ... Buesingen Germany is entirely within Switzerland > **[Büsingen am Hochrhein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B%C3%BCsingen)** > > Büsingen am Hochrhein (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}German: \[ˈbyːzɪŋən am ˈhoːxʁaɪn\], lit. 'Büsingen on the Upper Rhine'; Alemannic: Büesinge am Hochrhi, pronounced \[ˈbyəzɪŋə am ˈhoːçri\], often known simply as Büsingen, is a German municipality (7.62 km2 \[2.94 sq mi\]) in the south of Baden-Württemberg and an enclave entirely sur... as is Campione d’Italia > **[Campione d'Italia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campione_d'Italia)** > > Campione d'Italia (Italian pronunciation: \[kamˈpjoːne diˈtaːlja\]), (Comasco: Campiùn, .mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}pronounced \[kãˈp(j)ũː\]) is a comune of the Province of Como in the Lombardy region of Italy and an enclave surrounded by the Swiss canton of Ticino. It is also an exclave. At its closest, the enclave is less than on... ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/30 "2007-06-18T01:22:50Z")
[QUOTE=David Simmons] This happens along rivers that meander. Carter Lake, IA is entirely surrounded by Omaha, NE and is on the opposite side of the Missouri River from the rest of Iowa. [/QUOTE] But you can still reach Carter Lake, IA directly from the rest of Iowa. You just need to take a boat or an aircraft. Such is **NOT** the case for the Kentucky nipple. You must travel thru another state besides Kentucky to enter that bit of Kentucky. ---
**Author:** ![tbdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@tbdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tbdi)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/31 "2007-06-18T01:25:20Z")
[QUOTE=Captain Socks] Cairo, Illinois is closer to Memphis, Tennessee than to Chicago, Illinois. [/QUOTE] Why is this odd? ---
**Author:** ![Operation\_Ripper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/34f0e0/32.png) [@Operation\_Ripper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Operation_Ripper)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/32 "2007-06-18T01:31:52Z")
[QUOTE=Captain Socks] It doesn’t have to the American. [/QUOTE] Yes, it does. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/33 "2007-06-18T01:47:51Z")
Alaska is the most northerly, westerly and easterly state! ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/34 "2007-06-18T01:58:27Z")
I started a thread on whether the US is just too far south for light-skinned people when I saw the following on a map:[ul][_]Scandinavia, where the lightest skinned Europeans live, is at the same latitude range as Alaska.[_]Britain is as far north as Labrador.[_]The northernmost of the lower 48 states are at the latitude of central France.[_]The southernmost parts of Europe- southern Spain, Sicily and Greece- are at the latitude of North Carolina.Florida and southern Texas are as far south as Egypt.[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Lazlo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lazlo/32/9678_2.png) [@Lazlo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lazlo)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/35 "2007-06-18T03:16:43Z")
I’ve got nothing to add, but I have to get this off my chest. Two weeks from everywhere! ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/36 "2007-06-18T03:34:01Z")
How many U.S. states are farther north (in part, at least) than the southernmost part of Canada? Twenty-six! (The bar bet version of this question is: How many states are north of Canada?) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/37 "2007-06-18T03:35:53Z")
> [@](#): > > There are palm trees in Ireland? [Indeed](http://www.dpsinfo.com/trips/ireland05/photo24.html). They surprised me, too. ---
**Author:** ![WoodenTaco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/45deac/32.png) [@WoodenTaco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WoodenTaco)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/38 "2007-06-18T03:38:48Z")
The Democratic Republic of Congo, India, Algeria, and Argentina are all larger than Greenland. India is almost 150% of Greenland’s size. ---
**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/39 "2007-06-18T03:44:29Z")
[QUOTE=aktep] Dalhart, TX is also closer to 5 state capitals than it is to Austin (New Mexico, Colorado, Oklahoma, Wyoming and Kansas) [/QUOTE] My playing with Google Earth gives it ~485 mi. to Austin and only ~455 mi. to Lincoln, Nebraska. ---
**Author:** ![WoodenTaco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/45deac/32.png) [@WoodenTaco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WoodenTaco)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2007, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391/40 "2007-06-18T03:45:44Z")
[QUOTE=tbdi] Why is this odd? [/QUOTE] Cairo is the modern capital of Egypt, and Memphis was the ancient capital of the Pharaohs. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/geographical-oddities/408391.md?page=3)