Landlocked States
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Landlocked typically means having no direct access to the oceans or open seas. Looking at the US, we find 27 States are landlocked—you need to pass through another state or country to reach the ocean.
Double-Landlocked States
More interesting, though, is that 10 of those states are double-landlocked: to reach the coast, they must first cross a state that is itself landlocked.
The 10 double-landlocked states are Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
The Triple-Landlocked State
And then there's Nebraska, with the unusual distinction of being triple-landlocked. It's surrounded by double-landlocked states, meaning that to reach the ocean from Nebraska, you need to pass through:
1. A double-landlocked state
2. A singly landlocked state
3. A coastal state or country
Name That State
I spent six months as a child living in New York State. We had a board game called Name That State. It got me surprisingly good at identifying US states and their capitals—some of that knowledge stuck. In the sketch, I left the state names as initials so you can test yourself by mentally filling in the map =)
Double-Landlocked Countries
Usually, being landlocked applies to countries. I remember learning that Bolivia has a navy (primarily for Lake Titicaca) despite being landlocked.
And, years ago, a family member shared with me that there are only two double-landlocked countries in the world. I didn't even know what double-landlocked meant. You can see both of them in my article on Double-Landlocked Countries.
It's worth noting there are a few subtly different ways to define what counts as landlocked—especially when considering access via rivers or lakes. I found the definitions used by World Atlas made sense to me and seemed like a good basis for this sketch.
Related Ideas to Landlocked States
Also see:
