countychart.html

County Counting Chart

Tracking the number of US counties I have visited to date. Last updated 2/14/01, though mostly just adding comments on as-yet-unfinished states. Alas, except for tweaking and corrections, will be awhile before I'll be on a trip long enough to require giving this an update.

You can read about trips that have added to this chart, or my general travel pages. There is also an online message board for county collectors!

My county-counting guidelines:

Must touch land in each county...landing or taxiing on an airplane runway would count, but not flying over; boat would not count at all...must get off the ferry to count. (Be it tires or shoes, the "rubber hits the road", ha.) I keep separate tallies on counties driven and walked in, available upon request.
Prefer to drive or walk in and out, and given a choice would rather enter and exit at different points (I perform the border-nipping "U'ie" only when absolutely necessary...feels too much like cheating, and it is certainly NOT really visiting).
When a county splits after a visit, I can only count each piece if I had been in it on the previous visits (and both pieces only if I had been within both that way).
Authorities, in order of preference: USGS maps; DeLorme Atlas & Gazetteer; State-issued highway maps; county-issued maps; RandMcNally StreetFinder CD-ROM map programs; past personal experience of another friend, beyond a reasonable doubt. If not a clear yes or no beyond those, it is not counted. [AAA nationally-issued maps and atlases, and internet mapping services, lack the precision and detail to even be considered. Many of the AAA state affiliates with their own maps, however, can work when necessary]

US State	Counties	Visited	%	Date Completed or notes
Alabama	67	67	100	11/26/98
Alaska	25	1	4	just Juneau Borough so far
Arizona	15	15	100	9/12/96
Arkansas	75	47	63	bagged a few on US 67, 10&11/99
California	58	51	88	neededs are a LONG way from where I live
Colorado	63	36	57	mostly mountain ones left
Connecticut	8	8	100	3/17/89
District of Columbia	1	1	100	5/11/80
Delaware	3	3	100	3/23/89
Florida	67	67	100	1/17/92
Georgia	159	88	55	mostly eastern half of state yet
Hawaii	5	0	0	would likely try for all on one trip
Idaho	44	17	39	mostly mountain ones yet
Illlinois	102	102	100	9/12/92
Indiana	92	92	100	3/27/94
Iowa	99	99	100	9/5/94
Kansas	105	105	100	8/15/99
Kentucky	120	55	46	bulk left are the tough eastern ones
Louisiana	64	20	31	have only been to LA 4 times!?!
Maine	16	16	100	5/14/98
Maryland	24	24	100	11/7/93
Massachusetts	14	12	86	just need both island counties
Michigan	83	83	100	7/11/96 (just minutes after finishing WI)
Minnesota	87	51	59	most left in northern mosquito land
Mississippi	82	58	71	all to do in south & southeast
Missouri	115	91	79	keep nibbling away with each visit
Montana	56	24	43	also only from 4 visits (and 2 of those simply backtracking on Amtrak)
Nebraska	93	54	58	finally above 50% after 8/99 nips
Nevada	17	17	100	9/9/96
New Hampshire	10	10	100	5/15/98
New Jersey	21	21	100	4/19/94 (most were from that week)
New Mexico	33	33	100	9/14/96
New York	62	62	100	6/19/94
North Carolina	100	45	45	another state rarely visited; most gains from NC-dedicated treks in 1990, 1994
North Dakota	53	24	45	see Montana comment
Ohio	88	88	100	4/13/95
Oklahoma	77	77	100	11/24/95
Oregon	36	24	67	need some coastal and most desert
Pennsylvania	67	67	100	4/23/94
Rhode Island	5	5	100	6/12/93
South Carolina	46	46	100	1/3/95
South Dakota	66	39	59	most gots from interstates & southeast corner
Tennessee	95	70	74	all neededs in eastern third
Texas	254	115	45	got big chunk 11/99, though with moving truck I mostly stuck to I-20
Utah	29	18	62	most neededs east & southeast
Vermont	14	14	100	5/15/98 (less than an hour after finishing NH)
Virginia	136	83	61	includes 29 of 41 independent cities
Washington	39	39	100	9/4/97
West Virginia	55	37	67	neededs still too scattered about the state
Wisconsin	72	72	100	7/11/96
Wyoming	23	9	39	only got the I-80 and I-90 counties
Totals	3134	2302	73%	If only I knew....