England vs. Idaho

Don stumbled upon a map of England depicting a cross-country trip across the length and breath of England. The trip lasted fifteen hours and doubled back and forth, zigzagging across the nation.

He got to wondering how such a trip would compare to Idaho, so he pulled up a map of the state and tried to recreate a journey of the same length, staying strictly within the boundaries of the state.

You’ll notice the road is more of a backwards “J” shape rather than the zigzag. That’s because there are many remote parts of Idaho that don’t have roads, notably the massive Bitterroot Mountains in the central part of the state that straddle Idaho and Montana. There are very few passes bisecting these mountains.

So how does Idaho compare to England? Here are a few stats: 

Area:
England:    51,320 sq. miles
Idaho:        83,546 sq. miles (about 1.6 times larger)

Population:
England:    56,500,000 (almost 29 times more people)
Idaho:        1,950,000

Density:
England:    1,124 people/sq. mile
Idaho:        24 people/sq. mile (most of whom are concentrated in the larger cities)

As you can see, Idaho has a lot of catching up to do. On the other hand, it doesn’t have the phenomenally rich history of England either (I’m an English history buff). Here in Idaho, a house that’s 100 years old is ancient. England has homes dating back centuries and even millennia. How cool is that?

Lots to be said for both sides of the Atlantic!