There is a lot more to North Dakota than some would think. This state holds a whole lot of interesting facts that almost seem impossible at times, and it will never cease to surprise me. Read for yourself - believe them or not, the following 10 facts about North Dakota are all true.
1. The coldest temperature ever recorded in North Dakota is colder than the record low temperature in Nepal - even on Mt. Everest.
Yep, we've been colder than this place. Our coldest recorded temperature was -60 degrees Fahrenheit. The lowest temperature recorded on Mt. Everest (and all of Nepal), was -49 degrees Fahrenheit. Talk about chilly!
2. ...and the highest temperature ever recorded in the state is hotter than any South American country and most African countries.
It's not just cold here! The warmest temperature recorded in North Dakota was 121 degrees Fahrenheit. This is hotter than the highest temperatures in places like Brazil, Argentina, Morocco, Sudan, and Botswana - among many other countries.
3. If you stretched out the shoreline of Lake Sakakwea, it would be longer than the coastline of California.
North Dakota's largest body of water has a shoreline so long, it would surpass California's. For comparison, the shoreline for the lake is 1,320 miles. The California coast measures at only 840 miles. Wow!
4. Speaking of California, you can find as many white pelicans in North Dakota as you can there.
Pheasants aren't the only birds to be recognized in this state - we also have a huge area where white pelicans migrate to nest and rear their young. In fact, North Dakota's Chase Lake has the largest nesting colony of white pelicans in the entire nation.
5. There are more registered vehicles in the state than there are residents.
Considering everything in the state is pretty spread out, most everyone uses a car to get around. And I suppose a second car, because one is your usual getting around car and the other is your useful truck for hauling things, and maybe even a third car, your first beater that you still have and can't give up for sentimental reasons even if you're pretty sure it can't go five miles without giving out. It's okay, no one is judging.
6. There are also about three times more cows in the state than humans.
The most populous cattle is the angus - shown here - and cattle farmers in the state produce enough beef for 113 million hamburgers. Now THAT is a lot of beef!
7. All of that cattle contributed the the world's largest hamburger, made right here in ND.
Rutland, North Dakota boasts the title of being the place where the world's largest hamburger was made. It weighed a whopping (pun intended) 3,591 pounds and fed 8,000 people. They even successfully flipped this monster meat on a giant grill, part of which still stands today in Rutland.
8. English didn't become the official language of North Dakota until 1987.
Today, English is the most common language spoken here. But there were once many immigrants who spoke German or Norwegian. The language wasn't official until almost a hundred years after ND was made a state.
9. You probably know North Dakota produces a lot of wheat, but did you know it produces more wheat than almost every single state in the country?
We surpass 48 other states in wheat production - even states like Oklahoma - but we are just behind Kansas. That is, MOST of the time. There have been a few years we beat them in wheat production, too. Many years it is very close. Millions of bushels are produced per year in North Dakota alone.
10. We also are the top producers in a lot of other things, even honey! We are the ENTIRE nation's #1 honey producer.
If you're from North Dakota, you're probably used to seeing fields of crops everywhere, but what about fields of bee hives? About 35 million pounds of that delicious, golden, sticky sweet goodness is produced here every year. If you're wondering what happens to them in winter, most of them get to go on a sunny vacation to places like California where they help pollinate crops until they are back to making honey right here in ND.
Did any of these come as a surprise to you? Some of them sure did for me!
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