Any other West Coasters wierded out by how flat East Coast and Midwest cities are? (Chicago, difference)

[Darkhyperchaos]

Originally Posted by AcroJimmy2

Fill a void? What are you talking about? West Coast cities like SF, Seattle, and Portland have so much going for them despite terrain...

The point is that cities like New York, Chicago and even Boston just feel very flat compared to these cities, and it really changes thw orientation, structure, and feel of the city.

All midwesterners and east-coasters who try and deny this or post pictures of nearby hills or mountains (that arent in the city) are missing the point.

That sums up what I think quite well. It's not that the mid west and the east coast are flat. It's that the major cities feel flat in comparison. And besides, no hill on the east coast can beat this bad boy.

http://skinnymoose.com/adventurist/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/800px-mount_rainier_over_tacoma.jpg (broken link)

[Jammie]

http://search.aol.com/aol/imageDetai....city-data.com

Sorry. I didn't realize that the criteria was that the pictures had to be in a city. Since we have much more countryside then city areas, I thought it would qualify.

http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=6236

This peak is quite high.

Dark, your pictures are beautiful. I still prefer to see greenery on hills and mountains, but your view is very nice.

[toughguy]

There is greenery on Mt. Rainier, however this picture happens to focus above the treeline. On tall mountains, trees can only grow up to a certain point.

[lakal]

Originally Posted by tmac9wr

Just because he thinks much of the Midwest is boring makes him a hater?

Face it...to most people the Midwest is boring, save Chicago. Chicago is a world-class city, one of the best in the world. Unfortunately, once you leave Chicagoland it get's extremely...uninteresting? At least from what I've seen. Not to say there aren't interesting spots around, they're just not as prevalent as other areas of the country. From what I've seen, Milwaukee seems like an interesting enough city--though I've never been there.

I've made the cross-country trip from Boston to Denver (both I-70 and I-80), and would always be pumped when we got near Chicago, because it meant I was finally going to see civilization.

Whenever people talk like this, it's obvious that they've only seen some of these place from the internet, if at all.

The midwest just might be the most diverse regions of the country -- it's huge! There are mountains (Black Hills, Ozarks), giant inland seas, the country's mightiest river, plains, forests, hills, islands, peninsulas, wetlands and more in the Midwest.

The route you took skips several of the most interesting areas, regions, and cities entirely.

[ckhthankgod]

I wouldn't say that Syracuse is flat












http://www.syracuse.ny.us/uploadedImages/Thornden%20Park%20Water%20Tower.jpg (broken link)

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Deezus

Nothing against South Dakota--there are some nice areas in the Black Hills and Badlands, but that fact is simply not true..

Then I guess the summit sign on Harney Peak in the Black Hills is a lie?
SummitPost - the sign on the fire tower. -- Photos, Diagrams & Topos

[laguna88]

The east has unique geography, but cities in south and the midwest..... very flat and boring.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by toughguy

When I say diversity, i am referring to diversity in topography. Bro, the highest natural point in Illinois is Charles Mound at 1,235 feet. That isn't even a foothill on the west coast. If you want to get higher than that, you are riding an elevator in the (former) Sears tower or Trump Tower. Quit with this midwest persecution complex. I am specifically talking about Illinois here.

That 1,235 ft doesnt clarify base to summit height. Its true that Charles Mound is nothing huge, but 1,235 ft is roundabouts the elevation of PHX, AZ, which is flat as a board.

Ill cover the major points of IL: its more diverse than you think (topographically speaking)!

NE Illinois:Flickr Photo Download: illinois beach state park (http://www.flickr.com/photos/pismire_chicago/3777199899/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Central Illinois:
Sandy/scrub with cactus:
Flickr Photo Download: P1120159 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/alanwhitaker/2634793125/sizes/o/ - broken link)

Western Hognosed snake on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ignoffo/2027790877/ - broken link)

Sandstone canyons:
Flickr Photo Download: St Louis Waterfall - Alt View (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tryburn/4101939142/sizes/o/ - broken link)

Rolling hills and vast rivers:
Flickr Photo Download: Illinois River (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tryburn/4071220687/sizes/o/ - broken link)

North Central IL:
Sandstone bluffs:
Flickr Photo Download: March2008 200 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/oxalis37/2371925255/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Bogs/marshes:
Volo Bog State Natural Area, Volo, IL on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/pentachoron/4100626416/ - broken link)

Grasslands:
on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/kudra7/3914175308/ - broken link)

Flickr Photo Download: 20080524_Nachusa Grasslands_2512 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/40855483@N00/2684739525/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Pine forests with more cacti:
Flickr Photo Download: Cactus in Illinois (http://www.flickr.com/photos/thisisus/2815907791/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Rolling hills, dense forest, including large groups of white pine:
Flickr Photo Download: Castle Rock 6 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/carnwrite/460457164/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Rocky terrain:
Flickr Photo Download: Scenic Overlook2 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33924321@N07/3219224698/sizes/l/ - broken link)

NW IL:
larger hills:
Around the Bend on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/waukatt1/343912378/ - broken link)

Flickr Photo Download: Stairs II (http://www.flickr.com/photos/pat7047/3471364549/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Rolling hills, deciduous forests and farmland:
Flickr Photo Download: Galena Countryside (http://www.flickr.com/photos/9570987@N04/2718182599/sizes/o/ - broken link)

Flickr Photo Download: 2009-09-05 - 30th Anniversary Weekend 13 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/dharma_for_one/3917213849/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Western IL:
Palisades:
Flickr Photo Download: Blue bridge in distance (http://www.flickr.com/photos/sfgamchick/4047937197/sizes/l/ - broken link)


Eastern IL:
Sand prairies with more cacti:
Prairie Cactus on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jensdigiphotos/3674253573/ - broken link)

Prairies/savannahs:
Flickr Photo Download: (http://www.flickr.com/photos/lindenbaum/2604463311/sizes/l/ - broken link)


South Central IL:
Rolling hills:
Flickr Photo Download: Around Peoria 3 (17) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/sixfive175/205320917/sizes/o/ - broken link)

And of course, miles upon miles of farmland:
Flickr Photo Download: Lonely, in yellow... (http://www.flickr.com/photos/k2d2vaca/826609448/sizes/l/ - broken link)


SW Illinois:
Natural caves:
Flickr Photo Download: Cave-In-Rock, Hardin Co IL (2) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevystew/2969727332/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Limestone bluffs:
Piasa Bird on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimfrazier/106866088/ - broken link)

Sheer cliffs above the floodplains:
Flickr Photo Download: (http://www.flickr.com/photos/lunapooka/342750135/sizes/o/ - broken link)

More nice-sized hills further south:
Flickr Photo Download: S. Ill Trip 165 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/21525752@N03/2998530900/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Southern IL:
Deep woods, hills:
Flickr Photo Download: Garden of The Gods sunset (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tkr2099/493204332/sizes/o/ - broken link)

Road leading to Snake Road, an extremely diverse ecosystem:
Flickr Photo Download: Pine Hills Illinois (http://www.flickr.com/photos/9948354@N08/762461919/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Natural bridges:
Bell Smith Spring Natural Bridge on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jmo8/2862355192/ - broken link)

Rock formations:
Flickr Photo Download: Picture 048 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/30473763@N04/3619567281/sizes/l/ - broken link)

Cypress swamps (Northernmost range in the USA):
Flickr Photo Download: Horseshoe Lake Cypress & Egret (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrophotos/374031171/sizes/l/ - broken link)


Quite a bit more diverse than you thought, isnt it? IL isnt all farmland after all.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by laguna88

The east has unique geography, but cities in south and the midwest..... very flat and boring.

Wrong, wrong, and uh, wrong!

There are plenty of hilly Midwestern and Southern cities, just as there are plenty of flat Eastern and Western cities. Not every Midwest or Southern city is flat, and not every Western city is hilly.

[Chicago60614]

Originally Posted by tmac9wr

Just because he thinks much of the Midwest is boring makes him a hater?

Face it...to most people the Midwest is boring, save Chicago. Chicago is a world-class city, one of the best in the world. Unfortunately, once you leave Chicagoland it get's extremely...uninteresting? At least from what I've seen. Not to say there aren't interesting spots around, they're just not as prevalent as other areas of the country. From what I've seen, Milwaukee seems like an interesting enough city--though I've never been there.

I've made the cross-country trip from Boston to Denver (both I-70 and I-80), and would always be pumped when we got near Chicago, because it meant I was finally going to see civilization.

This really stuck me as such a naive post, and a pretty good example of what everyone is talking about by people sitting 2,000 miles away and branding a region as "boring" because of something they read on the internet or saw when they blasted through on the interstate. I mean honestly I thought California was kinda boring when I was just driving on rural interstates, same with the East coast.

Iowa to me is boring as hell when I'm driving on I-80, but once I stop for a few days in Iowa City or Des Moines and get down to life in the region I always have the time of my life.

I live in an area with no mountains, and while I do enjoy the scenery when I'm in an area with lots of mountains in the background - I've never noticed that it really effected day to day life for 99% of the population except for the views.

I've never found myself concerned or sat around and thought about the fact that Chicago's flat I guess. Once I really started thinking about it though I realized how much I take it for granted. I can walk anywhere, and do anything without ever thinking about being hit with huge hills. It really is a great city for walking and riding bikes because you don't have to ever contend with steep slopes.