Nowhere could the slogan "Go West young man" apply less than in the State of Minnesota. One of the main things Twin Citians talk about in their travels is how nice it looks -- over in Wisconsin.
One of the most boring stretches of freeway in the country is I-94 from Minneapolis to Fargo, which well represents what one should expect to find if they don't hug the eastern parts of this State in their travels. It's as if on the one hand it's trying to be a cold, high desert like New Mexico, while on the other hand it's flat like Kansas. It is said that many speed/crystal meth addicts became that way because they tried to drive I-94 in Minnesota.
Western Minnesota shouldn't even be given the dignity of saying that it's like South Dakota, home of Mount Rushmore and the beautiful Black Hills. Rather, it is much like North Dakota, which is arguably the most unimportant state in the Union.
The scenic parts of Minnesota do generally hug the eastern border. This is where one finds Lake Superior. It is also the region of the beautiful St. Croix River Valley, which has been compared to the beautiful rivers of Europe. Voyageurs National Park is also left-of-center, way up north.
Obviously, many of these areas are quite distant from the main metropolitan area of Minneapolis-St. Paul. But the St. Croix Valley is directly east of St. Paul. It's a little known fact that most of the scenic beauty in the Twin Cities area hugs the St. Paul side. But this is to be expected, since most people haven't been here and only know from hearsay of the Mall of America and Minneapolis.
