Most counties to connect Atlantic to Pacific GC59480

[+CheekyBrit]

There is a legendary challenge out there, MaxB’s Golden Spike Contiguous County Challenge GC59480, that challenges you to connect the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean with U.S. counties you have found a geocache in. I recon the path connecting Atlantic to Pacific with the fewest U.S. counties is 20, shown in yellow/light blue in the attached image. But what's the most U.S. counties?
Ground rules:
let's consider the counties in red as Pacific coast and green as Atlantic coast ( I don't know the checker's specific list)
1) If you pick a county that touches the coast again, it shortcuts your path and that becomes your new end/start.
2) If 3 counties all touch, the path that counts will shortcut the quickest way.
3) Any loops won't count. Sad days.
4) So instead, I recon a serpentine route like this will get the high score.
5) If corners are the only thing connecting 2 counties, let's say they don't touch. If they are either side of a single border, even for a small distance it counts as touching.
6) Ignore rivers, but your route can't cross Mexico, Canada, or across the great lakes.

[+CheekyBrit]

Here is a haphazard attempt I did and it has 1242 counties. That would be so so so much work and such an unusual layout of geocaching exploits. This is a foolish thought experiment to satisfy the "what if" that I'm sure has popped up in more heads that just mine.
Can you find any better? I'm sure you can.

To clarify, that is not the counties I've found in - that'd be crazy, that is my first guess at the longest route of counties connecting the Pacific and the Atlantic.

[+MNTA]

Fun! Looks like AZ you might get 1 more going to Gila Graham Pima Yuma  instead of Yavapai  & Maricopa

 

 

Wow MaxB has finds in 3143/3144 counties. Just one remote borough in Alaska missing. Wow

[+MNTA]

Northern California you can get 1 more from Solano county to Tehama you have 3 counties but if you go Yolo Sutter Yuba Plumas. There are three different options to get the 4 there.

 

Thanks for the puzzle fun

[+MNTA]

Last one Oregon skip Grant and instead use Union and Baker.

 

So 1245 counties if I'm correct

[+MNTA]

Ok final for the night I promise. South Dakota I think maybe 2 more 

[fendmar]

Does the Gulf of Mexico count as the Atlantic? Seems a bit of a shortcut! 

[+Smitherington]

And that route doesn’t hit the southernmost county in Texas. 
 

oh, I see you are avoiding the coastal counties.

Edited July 11 by Smitherington
Saw something else

[+igator210]

And you don't even get Delaware, Rhode Island or Maine.

[+Smitherington]

Because you would be at the Atlantic too soon.

[+MNTA]

On 7/11/2024 at 12:04 PM, Smitherington said:

And that route doesn’t hit the southernmost county in Texas. 
 

oh, I see you are avoiding the coastal counties.

2 more from southern Texas

[+KYcachingguy]

On 7/11/2024 at 9:55 AM, fendmar said:

Does the Gulf of Mexico count as the Atlantic? Seems a bit of a shortcut! 

Agree. The East coast goes from the eastern most of Maine to the tip of Florida. Not the full tip of Florida, just the eastern half of the tip. The west side of the Florida tip is Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf coast is not part of the Atlantic. The least number of counties is not 20. Because the counties become smaller in the southeast, there are more to go through, especially Georgia. I think it's closer to 50 would be the least.

[+GeoElmo6000]

On 7/11/2024 at 9:55 AM, fendmar said:

Does the Gulf of Mexico count as the Atlantic? Seems a bit of a shortcut! 

 

The Gulf of Mexico isn't the Atlantic, though they touch.  The Pacific Ocean also touches the Atlantic Ocean and they aren't the same body of water.

 

I never bothered with county challenges, in fact my US state only has 21 counties and I've never found caches in them all.

[+igator210]

The Gulf of Mexico is considered a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, and is considered part of it.

The Gulf of California is considered a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, and is considered part of it.

The Mediterranean Sea is considered a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, and is considered part of it.

 

There are definitions and rules, which would take too many citations to link here. Currents, tides, chemistry, blah, blah, blah.

[+niraD]

5 hours ago, igator210 said:

The Mediterranean Sea is considered a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, and is considered part of it.

Is the Black Sea considered a marginal sea of the Mediterranean Sea, and thus a marginal marginal sea (a marginal² sea) of the Atlantic Sea?

[+JustFindingOurWay]

This topic is painful to read. I was in MaxB country a couple weeks ago and with the exception of a DNF I thought I'd visited all the challenges that I qualified for. Turns out I missed this one in my trip planning. 

[+JL_HSTRE]

I hope this is just a thought exercise. At the point anyone even tries the longest route possible they might as well just go for every county in the Lower 48.

[+Smitherington]

As in FLtravelers?  Actually all the counties. 

[+GeoElmo6000]

12 hours ago, niraD said:

Is the Black Sea considered a marginal sea of the Mediterranean Sea, and thus a marginal marginal sea (a marginal² sea) of the Atlantic Sea?

Maybe the Atlantic is a marginal ocean of the Pacific since they touch.

[fendmar]

13 hours ago, niraD said:

Is the Black Sea considered a marginal sea of the Mediterranean Sea, and thus a marginal marginal sea (a marginal² sea) of the Atlantic Sea?

Maybe? Since you have to go through the Carribean or the Florida Straits to get from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic.

[+igator210]

16 hours ago, niraD said:

Is the Black Sea considered a marginal sea of the Mediterranean Sea, and thus a marginal marginal sea (a marginal² sea) of the Atlantic Sea?

Don't make me go down that rabbit hole... nope... turn away now.... uggg.

[+igator210]

4 hours ago, GeoElmo6000 said:

Maybe the Atlantic is a marginal ocean of the Pacific since they touch.

While technically there is only one global ocean, what we consider the major divisions arise more out of convenience, and how the early explores labeled them. Originally there were only 4 oceanic divisions, but a fifth has been proposed. However, due to disagreements on the boundaries, it has not been officially established by all the countries yet. 

Edited August 1 by igator210

[+Smitherington]

And no one has mentioned the Sea of Galilee. 

[+igator210]

1 hour ago, Smitherington said:

And no one has mentioned the Sea of Galilee. 

Is that by the land of Honah Lee? 

Ok.. getting way off topic now. Sorry.

[+TeamRabbitRun]

33 minutes ago, igator210 said:

Is that by the land of Honah Lee? 

Ok.. getting way off topic now. Sorry.

Well, Kunarion should be in here, 'Magic Dragon' and all...

[+bflentje]

I have a bit of work to do.

[+Smitherington]

it looks like 13 counties will finish you up.  Mine looked a lot like that unti I connected the counties in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.  Best of luck.

[+schmittfamily]

According to the original guidelines of the thread (the Gulf of Mexico is part of the Atlantic) that map would qualify.   Washington to Minnesota then South through Mississippi. 

  

Using the tip of Florida as the definition of the Atlantic, I think it's three to go - One in South Carolina to hit the Ocean, one in NC or GA, and one in AL or TN.   

Edited August 5 by schmittfamily

[+Smitherington]

Yes you are correct. I was looking at a mostly horizontal path similar to what I did. Oregon to the east end of Maine.

Edited August 5 by Smitherington
Add photo

[+CheekyBrit]

On 7/31/2024 at 4:52 AM, KYcachingguy said:

The Gulf coast is not part of the Atlantic. The least number of counties is not 20. Because the counties become smaller in the southeast, there are more to go through, especially Georgia. I think it's closer to 50 would be the least.

This is where I really want to know the inner workings of that challenge checker to see which counties they count as the Atlantic. 
Some curiosities may never be answered.

Edited August 17 by CheekyBrit

[+Hügh]

2 hours ago, CheekyBrit said:

Some curiosities may never be answered.

 

Some, however, may be:

 

Pacific:
- Clallam County (WA)
- Jefferson County (WA)
- Grays Harbor County (WA)
- Pacific County (WA)
- Clatsop County (OR)
- Tillamook County (OR)
- Lincoln County (OR)
- Lane County (OR)
- Douglas County (OR)
- Coos County (OR)
- Curry County (OR)
- Del Norte County (CA)
- Humboldt County (CA)
- Mendocino County (CA)
- Sonoma County (CA)
- Marin County (CA)
- San Francisco City and County (CA)
- San Mateo County (CA)
- Santa Cruz County (CA)
- Monterey County (CA)
- San Luis Obispo County (CA)
- Santa Barbara County (CA)
- Ventura County (CA)
- Los Angeles County (CA)
- Orange County (CA)
- San Diego County (CA)

Atlantic:
- Washington County (ME)
- Hancock County (ME)
- Waldo County (ME)
- Knox County (ME)
- Lincoln County (ME)
- Sagadahoc County (ME)
- Cumberland County (ME)
- York County (ME)
- Rockingham County (NH)
- Essex County (MA)
- Suffolk County (MA)
- Norfolk County (MA)
- Plymouth County (MA)
- Barnstable County (MA)
- Bristol County (MA)
- Newport County (RI)
- Washington County (RI)
- Naugatuck Valley COG (CT)
- South Central COG (CT)
- Northwest Hills COG (CT)
- Southeastern Connecticut COG (CT)
- Westchester County (NY)
- Nassau County (NY)
- Suffolk County (NY)
- Queens County (NY)
- Kings County (NY)
- New York County (NY)
- Richmond County (NY)
- Middlesex County (NJ)
- Monmouth County (NJ)
- Ocean County (NJ)
- Atlantic County (NJ)
- Cape May County (NJ)
- Cumberland County (NJ)
- Kent County (DE)
- Sussex County (DE)
- Worcester County (MD)
- Accomack County (VA)
- Northampton County (VA)
- Norfolk (VA)
- Newport News (VA)
- Hampton (VA)
- Virginia Beach (VA)
- Currituck County (NC)
- Dare County (NC)
- Hyde County (NC)
- Carteret County (NC)
- Onslow County (NC)
- Pender County (NC)
- New Hanover County (NC)
- Brunswick County (NC)
- Horry County (SC)
- Georgetown County (SC)
- Charleston County (SC)
- Beaufort County (SC)
- Jasper County (SC)
- Chatham County (GA)
- Bryan County (GA)
- Liberty County (GA)
- McIntosh County (GA)
- Glynn County (GA)
- Camden County (GA)
- Nassau County (FL)
- Duval County (FL)
- St. Johns County (FL)
- Flagler County (FL)
- Volusia County (FL)
- Brevard County (FL)
- Indian River County (FL)
- St. Lucie County (FL)
- Martin County (FL)
- Palm Beach County (FL)
- Broward County (FL)
- Miami-Dade County (FL)
- Monroe County (FL)

 

[+CheekyBrit]

20 hours ago, Hügh said:

 

Some, however, may be:

WOW. CHRISTMAS!!!!!

Thanks, Hügh.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we now know accurately which counties that checker would ping. This means the shortest route is somewhere around the 58 counties mark and the longest route can now be a fair bit longer. 
Would you like to play a game?

Edited August 18 by CheekyBrit
Adding new map