Idaho

Potato jokes are genuinely welcome in Idaho, since locals take real, lighthearted pride in the crop rather than finding the stereotype tiresome. The state’s nickname, “The Gem State,” comes from its real mineral wealth, including more than 70 kinds of gemstones found within its borders, among them the star garnet, found in only one other place on Earth.

Reserved and self-reliant, people here spend free time outdoors by default, a “work hard, play hard” way of life found across the state. Fry sauce and finger steaks reflect a simple, plain food culture rooted in that same farming heritage.

Craters of the Moon‘s volcanic fields look like another planet, and Hells Canyon cuts even deeper than the Grand Canyon.