# How far do you live from the nearest state (country) line? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 13, 2012, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682 "2012-04-13T18:03:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/81 "2012-04-14T20:35:09Z")
5 minute walk away from the Ottawa River. It seperates Ontario & Quebec ---
**Author:** ![Michael63129](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3da27b/32.png) [@Michael63129](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael63129)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/82 "2012-04-14T20:44:35Z")
About 1 mile to the next county, 3 miles from Illinois, 700 from Canada and 800 from Mexico (I live on the south side of the St. Louis area, about 6 miles from the city itself). ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/83 "2012-04-14T20:45:29Z")
5 miles (8 km) due east by northeast from here to the banks of the Potomac, the Maryland state line. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/84 "2012-04-14T20:58:14Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > At most. 45 minutes would probably do it. Didn’t realise the crossing was 2hrs. Had it in my head it was shorter up there. Only done it once, by Cat from the new port in Belfast. Two hours was an approximation, it’s maybe a bit less, but more than 90 mins. Edit: not Cat, Stena Line cat. ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/85 "2012-04-14T20:59:01Z")
58 miles to the Welsh border, 56miles to the sea and 136 miles to the French coast! ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/86 "2012-04-14T21:06:34Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > I’m in Scotland, the border with England is about 80 miles south of here. > > I can’t drive directly to a foreign country. The nearest is the Republic of Ireland: two hours by car to Stranraer, two hours by ferry to Belfast, and another, what, hour or so to the border? By this measure I’m a bit over 3 hours from France. 2 1/2 hours to Ashford, 35 minutes on the Shuttle through the Channel Tunnel. (In reality add an extra hour for the delays on the M25 around London!) ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/87 "2012-04-14T21:10:35Z")
> [@MarcusF](#): > > By this measure I’m a bit over 3 hours from France. 2 1/2 hours to Ashford, 35 minutes on the Shuttle through the Channel Tunnel. (In reality add an extra hour for the delays on the M25 around London!) Only an hour? Must have got better since I lived down there 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jasper\_Kent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a9a28c/32.png) [@Jasper\_Kent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasper_Kent)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/88 "2012-04-14T21:13:02Z")
About 10 miles north of Georgia. ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/89 "2012-04-14T21:13:46Z")
You could be right - I try to avoid the M25 like the plague :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/90 "2012-04-14T22:00:32Z")
Maybe 25 miles from NJ and 20 miles from CT as the crow flies. Also I’m about a 10 minute walk away from NYC. ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/91 "2012-04-14T22:04:54Z")
About 11 miles west of Indiana. Husband estimates about 90 miles south of Wisconsin. County line? About half a block. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2012, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/92 "2012-04-14T23:22:15Z")
> [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > I’m about 530 miles from Georgia, which is the only state I could drive to from here. > I could hit the Florida state line in just under 9 miles, though..Atlantic side. > > -D/a Obviously, you’re in the Keys and using driving miles, and not as the crow flies. Then, depending on your exact location, either Cuba or Bimini (Bahamas) would be your closest non-Florida border. Also, are you denying the statehood of Alabama? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/93 "2012-04-15T00:12:46Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > Obviously, you’re in the Keys and using driving miles, and not as the crow flies. Then, depending on your exact location, either Cuba or Bimini (Bahamas) would be your closest non-Florida border. > > Also, are you denying the statehood of Alabama? 😛 Alabama is further away..I didn’t want to stretch it. And technically - this is SDMB after all - the title of the thread is “How far do you live from the nearest state (country) line”. I went with state. 🙂 From where I am..I think Bimini is closer than Cuba. I’ll go book a boat and check it out. Be back in a few days! -D/a ---
**Author:** ![Dano83860](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a4c791/32.png) [@Dano83860](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dano83860)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/94 "2012-04-15T16:00:49Z")
Idaho panhandle here. 20 miles west to Washington, 18 miles east to Montana and 70 miles north the British Columbia. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/95 "2012-04-15T21:18:26Z")
> [@Dano83860](#): > > Idaho panhandle here. 20 miles west to Washington, 18 miles east to Montana and 70 miles north the British Columbia. You may have close to a minimum distance on three sides of you. Only those further north of your location could beat you. It has me wondering whose location is the minimum on _ **All Four Sides** _ with different states (or countries) on each side. A gut hunch would be that it would have to be an eastern state, and probably some little weird shaped part of the state at that. VT and NH may wind up with that distinction. Where else might that place be? ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/96 "2012-04-15T21:48:19Z")
If you live at the very northern tip of Delaware, you are very close to three states. But the ocean is to the southeast. That’s the issue with all the tiniest states, they’re all coastal. In the case of DC, it’s so small that it’s completely surrounded by two states. In Delaware, you could still live pretty close to four states, but you’d have to drive through a closer one to get to the farther one. Does that count? Also, I don’t know how close any private homes are to the the Four Corners area (AZ, CO, NM, and UT). but in theory you could build a place where a door in each side of your house opens in a different state. Still, technically speaking, you would be residing in one state, have three more extremely close, and have to travel a very long way to get to the next nearest. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/97 "2012-04-15T21:57:22Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > If you live at the very northern tip of Delaware, you are very close to three states. But the ocean is to the southeast. That’s the issue with all the tiniest states, they’re all coastal. In the case of DC, it’s so small that it’s completely surrounded by two states. > > In Delaware, you could still live pretty close to four states, but you’d have to drive through a closer one to get to the farther one. Does that count? > > Also, I don’t know how close any private homes are to the the Four Corners area (AZ, CO, NM, and UT). but in theory you could build a place where a door in each side of your house opens in a different state. Still, technically speaking, you would be residing in one state, have three more extremely close, and have to travel a very long way to get to the next nearest. Excellent analysis that comes to pretty much the same conclusions I have. Is that Four Corners lot available for a private home, you guess? As for having to drive across one state to get to the fourth, I suppose we could do that if it produced a minimum 4-sided situation. Maybe we can locate one spot where we don’t have to do that. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/98 "2012-04-15T22:55:03Z")
I’m ~38 miles from Kentucky, the nearest state line. I’m 519 miles from Windsor, Ontario, the nearest international border. From where I live, it’s ~8 miles to the Trousdale County (TN) line. ---
**Author:** ![Shadez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Shadez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shadez)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/99 "2012-04-15T23:01:05Z")
Less than half a mile from the New Jersey border. ---
**Author:** ![Schrodinger\_s\_Platypus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Schrodinger\_s\_Platypus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schrodinger_s_Platypus)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2012, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682/100 "2012-04-15T23:14:09Z")
About 3 miles east of me is the Pennsylvania/ New Jersey line. Not too far to Delaware in tje south. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-far-do-you-live-from-the-nearest-state-country-line/618682.md?page=6)