The Most Extreme Places in the US

With international travel continuing to be restricted for Americans, there’s no better time to take stock of what America has to offer. Instead of heading to far flung corners of the world to scale the highest peak, witness wild rainfall, bake under the scorching sun, or freeze in sub-zero temperatures, look no further than your own backyard. We’ve rounded up all of America’s extremes, from the highest to the lowest, driest to the wettest, so you won’t even need to take out your passport.

Please review and follow all state and local guidelines while traveling.

February 03, 2021

By: Lucy Sherriff

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Deepest Lake

Not just the deepest lake in the US, but also one of the deepest in the world, Oregon’s Crater Lake is 1,943 ft deep. It’s also almost five miles wide and more than six miles long, with a surface area of 20.53 square miles–as well as being one of the cleanest and clearest large bodies of water in the world.

Quietest Place

The Hoh River Valley in Olympic National Park, Washington, is home to the quietest spot in the continental US. It’s also one of the most complex forest systems in the world, with its fungus-covered logs and lichen-spotted trees. It’s also a temperate rainforest, and one of the only ones in the US. For the place to qualify as truly quiet, there must be silent intervals of 15 minutes or more during daylight hours, and it’s all documented by a man named Gordon Hempton.

Windiest

Boston, Massachusetts can claim to be the windiest city in the US, with average annual speeds of 12.3mph, closely followed by Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, at 12.2mph. By location, Mount Washington in New Hampshire wears the crown for windiest place. In fact, for nearly 62 years, Mount Washington held the world record for the fastest wind gust ever recorded on Earth: 231 mph on April 12, 1934.

Darkest Nights

New Mexico’s Cosmic Campground in Gila National Forest is believed to be the darkest place in the US, thanks to the nearest source of artificial light being more than 40 miles away. Perfect for a solitary stargazing session.

Lowest

Another record for Death Valley. Badwater Basin, in Death Valley, California, is the lowest land point of the continent at -279 ft below sea level. The basin also contains salt flats, making for an eerie-but extremely photographic-experience. The lowest point is actually not where the designated sign points to, but is in fact a few miles to the west, and varies in position depending on rainfall. The basin was believed to be the lowest elevation in the Western Hemisphere, until a spot in Argentina was discovered. Laguna del Carbon lies at =344 ft, and is also the site of dinosaur fossils.

Highest

Mt Denali in Alaska is the highest summit of North America, standing at 20,310ft. Formerly known as Mount McKinley, it is the third most isolated peak on earth, after Mt Everest and Mt Aconcagua, in Argentina. Located in Denali National Park, the first documented attempt to climb it was made in 1903, but the climber was unsuccessful. Another attempt was made in 1906, and the climber claimed to have made it to the top, however the ascent was unverified and so its legitimacy was questioned. The official first summit was recorded on June 7, 1913, by a group of climbers.

Coldest

Fairbanks, Alaska, sets the record for the coldest city in the US, with the state also boasting the coldest place. Fairbanks sees average temperatures in its coldest month at -16.9F, and its historic low is -66F, while Huron, South Dakota,, can claim to be the coldest southernmost city in the US. Grand Forks in North Dakota is the coldest city in the contiguous 48 states. In 1971, Prospect Creek Camp recorded temperatures of -80F, with Rogers Pass in Montana following in second place with -70F in 1954.

Hottest

Death Valley holds another record, although perhaps not one you’d actually want to experience. In 1913, 134F was recorded on the thermometer at Greenland Ranch, which was later aptly renamed Furnace Creek. The only other location in the US that has ever come close is Lake Havasu City in Arizona, which recorded 128F in 1994, followed by Gold Rock Ranch, California,

Driest

Death Valley is famous as the driest place in North America. Average rainfall is less than 2 inches, due to its location inland. Winter storms moving east from the Pacific Ocean have to pass over mountain ranges to continue on their path. As the clouds rise up they cool and the moisture condenses and falls on the western side of the ranges, meaning that Death Valley, on the east side, receives little moisture. Between 1929 and 1953, no rain was recorded. At all.

Wettest

The wettest place is believed to be Mt Waialeale on Kauai, in Hawaii, which receives around 460 inches of rain every year. The wettest cities in the US aren’t actually in the Pacific Northwest, contrary to popular belief, but in fact are Mobile, Alabama, with more than 62 inches of precipitation annually, and New Orleans, Louisiana, with almost the same amount of rain every year.