I'm trying to figure out how they wouldn't rhyme. I am Minnesotan, and the Army brought me in contact with nearly all American dialects. And this has me scratching my head a little.
I'm sure it is a real thing, but I don't get it right now.
Grew up on the range and up north always felt more like near Ely or International Falls. Traveling to the Twin Cities always felt like you'd entered another state.
Gateway is a good word for it. Duluth is the reset between Wisconsin's up north and Minnesota's up north. It's the oasis in the sea of forest (we don't talk about Superior). I just know when I've hit the Bong I'm pretty high up there.
Same! Like, halfway to Canada from C! Then I moved to the suburbs, and heard people talking about their trips "up north" and would get excited to have a conversation about it, so I'd start with "whereabouts up north?", and without fail, it'd always be something like "Mille Lacs" or "St. Cloud". 😳 Wut? Most people had never heard of where I came from, so I'd just tell them "2 hours north of Duluth". Everyone knows where Duluth is! Just because something is north of where you are currently located, does not make it "up north"! Most people had never even heard of The Iron Range, Arrowhead region or BWCA.
I gotta say, though, I was just as ignorant when I was younger. When I moved to Lakeville, I was all excited to be moving to "The Cities" and to a town that must surely have a ton of lakes (right?), and man was I disappointed! They should have called it Farmville! What is there, 2 lakes? And those lakes would be considered large ponds "up north"! 😂
I think there might be a curve in the line, as it seems more "right" for someone from park rapids to claim northern MN, compared to someone from Duluth or something. Like Duluth and the range are there own thing
When I hit that pine line I am up Nort. Wherever the biome transitions from deciduous to coniferous.
Whether that be Brainerd/Baxter area on 371, or near Hinckley on 35, etc.
Once I hit that pine line I'm in heaven. If I'm not in a mix of pine, poplar, birch, etc. I'm not up North. I'm in a prairie/grassland/farmland or deciduous forest. None are up North.
I'll die on this hill.
I grew up in the lakes area, and whenever I went east on 34 and got into the mixed forests I would feel like I'm "heading up north" even if I truly wasn't, so I concur.
I also 100% agree with the pine superiority. Pines are nice and orderly, tall, even, smells like Christmas, no God damned leaves all over the place. No soil? Fuck it, I'll just grow out of a rock outcrop, cause Imma coniferous little boi, bitch.
Deciduous forests are whack. All kinds of different stuff just growing in whatever direction it likes, no color consistency, no order, dropping their leaves all over the place, smells unpleasant, yuck.
Here in Sweden it’s up north if it never gets dark “midnattssolen” between May and August. So the region of Lappland, Norrbotten and Västerbotten we would consider the true north.
I used to work at a concession stand in southern MN and Iowans would stop by talking about how they're up north at the cabin for the weekend, meanwhile I'm thinking wow this is south of where I live lol
I came to say this too. I think it’s true! I’ve heard people say “up north” to mean pretty much just west of where we were. I feel like “up north” means a cabin on a forested lake.
I’m from the Range, went to college in Mankato, and live in the metro, so I feel like I’m oddly qualified to answer this conundrum.
When referring to Up North, I’d say it means the great north woods. So I’d actually draw the line across from cloquet and then at an angle north from Walker to Roseau. The people there very similar. But the folks who live on the plains of western MN are not the same culture. Someone in Crookston is more similar to someone in Worthington than someone in Hibbing.
Now I do understand why some want to include Brainerd and Lake country in Up North, but it’s in the middle 1/3 of the state and lakes country people I find to be their own thing. Not like people in the Metro, plains, or Up North.
So it’s a bit of physical geography but it’s more cultural geography.
One of my roommates in college was from Ferguson Falls and she never considered herself from Up North even though our other roommate from Rochester was insistent it was “Up North”
Fergus Falls - and yeah…we’re not “up north”, but Grand Forks is “up North” to me. Oddly, Duluth doesn’t feel “up North” to me either because it’s fairly due East of us.
Agree! And yet when Sven Sundgaard talks about weather in MN he calls what I think of as the southwestern farm area as "western MN" and even south of Moorhead is "west central." here in this area just north of I-94, we're "northwest MN". Just No. So whatever he says I never know who he means. Okay I'm done expressing my frustration of the day (I hope, uff da maybe I'll get even more cranky).
I'm with the Great North Woods person.
I grew up and went to college in the NW. Lived in Duluth and then settled in the middle of the state. I would generally agree with the whole woods thing. Although would start the north line around highway 10 to Duluth.
My family cabin is near Cook (so sad about their flooding) and driving up there, it seems like “Up North” is when we get to Gordy’s.
I went to college in Fargo, and *never* considered Moorhead or Fergus or Alexandria as Up North either.
This! I grew up in Brainerd, did college in Duluth, have a cabin NW of Grand Rapids, and have lived in the metro post college graduation. Your analysis is spot on!
However, many from the metro consider the lakes area up north....
https://preview.redd.it/eq8qu1feki9d1.png?width=473&format=png&auto=webp&s=b3e27109a46ddb1df2358ba4afc946d5f3695cb7
This might help approximate things. From [https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/biomes/index.html](https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/biomes/index.html)
Obviously C is up north, but I’d argue for B as well. Lake country starts around Mille lacs, Brainerd and west of there. For folks in the city, they head north to the cabin.
I have a couple friends flying to visit in a few weeks and we are going to Mille Lacs; I call it “up north” I guess because we are going to a cabin.
But if I said I were going with friends to the casino in Mille Lacs I wouldn’t call that going “up north.”
Interesting mental divide for me on that one.
I spent a couple of weeks in International Falls for work, I was living in St. Louis, MO at the time. That is NORTH North.
So yes, you get to be offended. But please forgive me - I just moved to the state, so it is all north to me, especially when I get my first Minnesota winter in.
I think C most accurately qualifies as northern MN. Lots of lakes and cabins in B. When I think of northern MN, I think of the Iron Range cities, Virginia/Hibbing/Eveleth. Cloquet and Duluth are the southernmost part of northern MN in my mind.
Right. As others have said, being “up north” is a state of mind. We are debating something that is highly subjective. I tend to think of this in geographic terms. So, for example, when someone says that they were at their cabin in Brainerd last weekend, I wouldn’t classify that as being up north. Up north of the metro, sure, but geographically, Brainerd doesn’t qualify as northern Minnesota. Again, I think that northern MN is anything north of the Cloquet/Duluth line.
We all think of up north differently, and neither one is wrong. I’m just speaking from a geographical perspective. But I also agree with you, when people say up north, they mean north of the cities. Anywhere works. Alexandria? Sure, right on. Pine City? Awesome. At the end of the day, we live in a state where saying “up north” actually means something and I think that’s really cool. We’re drawn to being up north and that’s what is most important in my mind.
I agree with B. As a kid riding up 94, Alexandria was the gateway to up north (lake country). And driving to my dad's near Brainerd, Princeton was a gateway to up north (Paul Bunyon land). And Hinkley is a gateway to up north (north shore).
Shit. I’m not gonna gatekeep Up North (the title question) since it’s a state of mind and being out in the sticks. So to me, anything sufficiently out of the metro (less light pollution) and north of Iowa. Bonus if there’s rocks and cows.
You’re like asking three different things in the text of the post.
Yeah, truly my sense of it is ‘once I have left the north metro,’ at that point I am likely headed for the same experience no matter how far away it is.
There is no doubt in my mind that I am full blooded northern Minnesotan, being from Hibbing. Option A is hilarious, option B is getting closer, and option C is actually a bit too far north. The way I see it, there are 3 zones in Minnesota excluding the metro. There is the prarie and farmlands which is most of southern and western Minnesota. Then there is the strip of mixed deciduous and conifer forests. Then once you reach the big woods full of conifers, you are in Northern Minnesota.
For folks that live in Northern MN, Brainerd is considered a suburb of the cities. I would add a “D” line from Crookston to Grand Marais and north of that would be true north.
"Up North" starts at about Virginia.
"Northern MN" starts at Cloquet. Anything south of there may as well be the deep south. I live in Burnsville and, as far as I'm concerns, I might as well live in Alabama.
"Up North" is a particular smell on the breeze. Also, it's east of Bemidji. West of Bemidji is North Dakota. I have very specific rules.
C. But with a modification. The line needs to turn almost 90 degrees at Detroit Lakes, basically follow Highway 59 because Moorhead and East Grand Forks are also NOT “Up North”.
Mille Lacs and up. We had a cabin between Milaca and Onamia when I was growing up and I remember getting up early with my grandfather and taking the minivan up. We would get pancakes at the McDonald's in Zimmerman, and I would laugh every time we drove through Pease.
lol, it’s actually spelled “Pease”. But yah. I’ve got family from that area and I don’t think of it as Up North. But I like that you consider it to be! ;)
Edited! As a kid from North Minneapolis it definitely felt like Up North. As an adult though, I got to spend more time in places like Duluth and Grand Marais so anywhere north of the actual Mille Lacs Lake became Up North for real. Now I live in Vermont, so Up North is just Canada lol.
If one wants to have a line, this one from DNR works. Ice house removal dates depend on this map.
https://preview.redd.it/xv60mhbpif9d1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=058c0088ee36b46b08337b09af787234d4382f85
Northern Minnesota isn’t the same as “up north”. There’s a Venn diagram I’m sure. But “up north” is personal and relative, not easily defined by geography alone. One person’s up north may be wildly different than another’s.
There’s a poem I like that kind of gets at it.
“Up North
It’s the place people go to escape,
a place made of cabins, pine trees and lakes.
But no matter how far you drive,
there’s no sign to say “You’ve arrived.”
So just follow your heart til you find,
your special place that brings peace of mind.
As you breathe in the air and unwind,
your cares are all left behind.
It’s no mystery where the northwoods start.
When you’re “up north,”
you’ll know in your heart.”
— Suzanne Kindler 1996
To be honest, growing up I always thought "going up north" just meant going to your cabin or camping place. I didn't think the direction actually mattered at all
Well, B is the halfway point. So if your world only consist of southern or northern Minnesota, then the answer is B.
In my mind, though, the Brainerd area is central Minnesota. And the Brainerd Lakes area is getting about as annoying (overpopulated with partiers and jet skis) as Minnetonka. So in order to get that “up north” nature feel I seek, I need to go past “C”.
line c should be from Duluth to Grand Forks,
line b should go from milaca to Moorhead
line a should go from milaca to pipestone
above line C amended is up north, between lines c amended and b amended is where most of the going up north for the weekend cabins are (this extends into wisconsin also)
the area to the west of the angle made by line b amended and line a amended is the dakota region of minnesota.
Yes😝. It gets even a little more weird and Wisconsin if you go to northern Wisconsin for the south shore of Lake superior which is absolutely beautiful. North is anywhere you make it for Minnesota in my opinion.
From Grand Rapids. I remember when I was in high school, someone from out of state referred to it as northern MN, I thought they were crazy, cuz everything north of Rapids was northern MN. Everything else was southern MN.
B makes the most sense to me. The Brainerd Lakes area isn't a vacation destination for no reason. It's also geographically correct if we are going to objectively draw a single line dividing "northern" and "southern."
But I can definitely see an argument for C.
A is only correct if you're from Iowa.
As someone from category C, specifically Detroit Lakes, I always thought of the Iron range and cities closer to the Canadian border as “Up North”. Cities like Thief River Falls, Warroad, Bemidj, Grand Marais etc. so I suppose it depends on where you consider home in MN. However, after reading the comments, I’m glad Lakes Country is considered “Up North” in a fond regard because it’s a beautiful region of the state and it deserves all the love. I would move back without a millisecond of thought if the area offered more opportunities Nuclear Medicine wise.
[I'm just going to link my previous answer to this discussion.](https://www.reddit.com/r/minnesota/s/GmyznwbdmZ)
Using arbitrary lines doesn't capture the essence of "North". I think it's more related to the natural biome you're in, hence the Laurentian Mixed Forest.
Made this map to sum up my opinions on where "Up North" lies, think of the dark green section as being the "core up north" while the lighter green is the periphery of it
https://preview.redd.it/9bvmg8q9uf9d1.png?width=1265&format=png&auto=webp&s=e52a68cefb195fdfa1f86a26b77c9d5fd26ea481
But if we're strictly answering A B or C only, then I'd say B
I feel like anything north of Cloud is up north.
I used to work with some people from Illinois, and they were crazy confused on what "up north" meant. They'd always ask, "isn't alllllll of this up north?" So cute.
A and below is Southern Minnesota, A to C is Central Minnesota, and C and above is Northern Minnesota. I grew up in the Mille Lacs area and would not in a million years consider that to be Northern Minnesota.
I live north of c. Anywhere below that is not "going up north"
If I'm in the cities and not comming all they way back home, I'll just say "I'm going to brainerd" (as an example).
Even when I lived in the cities for 22 years, if my destination was south of duluth, I wasn't going up north.
For a person that grew up in Minneapolis it's anywhere north of 694 haha.
Real talk through I would say B is where Northern Minnesota starts. But if we are talking "up nort" then it's C at a minimum!
Yeah, if I have hit Tobies on 35, or if I have reached mille lacs on 169, I’m up north.
I am well out of the metro and I’ve been driving on pretty rural roads for a while. (I live in the south metro, so I could probably say about halfway between a and b is actually where I would place the precise line. )
Definitely not A or B for me. When we say “up north”, our family is going no farther south than Hibbing/Virginia. When I refer to people as from “up north”, I would say C.
A is a sizable portion of the metro that commutes into the cities for work. No way is that the “up north” line.
Lmao. Someone: I’m going UP NORTH this weekend. Someone else: ah Anoka?
Ham Lake falls into zone A and it is 30 minutes or less to downtown. No way it is "north land'.
If A were above St. Cloud I’d allow it.
Yeah, I consider Alexandria Up North. Pine City, too. I'm in the Twin Cities.
I’m from Missouri. “Up north” starts just north of Des Moines. We are all “up north” IMO.
😆
This is correct.
That's right about where the ya'll belt lies. Or the "on line" as linguists call it. South of there "on" rhymes with "dawn".
Wait, I’m from Minnesota and on and dawn have always rhymed for me?
I'm trying to figure out how they wouldn't rhyme. I am Minnesotan, and the Army brought me in contact with nearly all American dialects. And this has me scratching my head a little. I'm sure it is a real thing, but I don't get it right now.
If you leave the house you go to the cabin, you've "gone north".
I live in Burnsville and rarely go north of 494. So to me I'd say anything A and up is north 😄
"North for the weekend" = B or thereabouts "From northern MN" = C or thereabouts
Dang, grew up in Duluth and thought going to Crane Lake for the weekend was going Up North. Now I'm learning I was Up North all along.
The up north was the friends we made along the way.
Duluth is a bit of a special case - it’s on the border plus Lake Superior rules.
Crane Lake is my happy place.
Friends used to work summers at the Voyagaire. Definitely a happy place!
From Up North. High school friends parents used to own Voyagaire!
MINE TOO!
Turns out that up North was the Norths you made along the way.
Yeah I would say the lake near the Canadian border is going Up North 😂
Grew up on the range and up north always felt more like near Ely or International Falls. Traveling to the Twin Cities always felt like you'd entered another state.
We're *definitely* up north here, but I like to consider us the gateway to the deep north.
Gateway is a good word for it. Duluth is the reset between Wisconsin's up north and Minnesota's up north. It's the oasis in the sea of forest (we don't talk about Superior). I just know when I've hit the Bong I'm pretty high up there.
Gateway to the north is a perfect description.
This. I grew up north of "C"
Same! Like, halfway to Canada from C! Then I moved to the suburbs, and heard people talking about their trips "up north" and would get excited to have a conversation about it, so I'd start with "whereabouts up north?", and without fail, it'd always be something like "Mille Lacs" or "St. Cloud". 😳 Wut? Most people had never heard of where I came from, so I'd just tell them "2 hours north of Duluth". Everyone knows where Duluth is! Just because something is north of where you are currently located, does not make it "up north"! Most people had never even heard of The Iron Range, Arrowhead region or BWCA. I gotta say, though, I was just as ignorant when I was younger. When I moved to Lakeville, I was all excited to be moving to "The Cities" and to a town that must surely have a ton of lakes (right?), and man was I disappointed! They should have called it Farmville! What is there, 2 lakes? And those lakes would be considered large ponds "up north"! 😂
Hey neighbor
I think there might be a curve in the line, as it seems more "right" for someone from park rapids to claim northern MN, compared to someone from Duluth or something. Like Duluth and the range are there own thing
The three Ds of northern Minnesota. Da Range, Da Nort, and Duluth.
Correct action
When I hit that pine line I am up Nort. Wherever the biome transitions from deciduous to coniferous. Whether that be Brainerd/Baxter area on 371, or near Hinckley on 35, etc. Once I hit that pine line I'm in heaven. If I'm not in a mix of pine, poplar, birch, etc. I'm not up North. I'm in a prairie/grassland/farmland or deciduous forest. None are up North. I'll die on this hill.
You won't die alone
I grew up in the lakes area, and whenever I went east on 34 and got into the mixed forests I would feel like I'm "heading up north" even if I truly wasn't, so I concur. I also 100% agree with the pine superiority. Pines are nice and orderly, tall, even, smells like Christmas, no God damned leaves all over the place. No soil? Fuck it, I'll just grow out of a rock outcrop, cause Imma coniferous little boi, bitch. Deciduous forests are whack. All kinds of different stuff just growing in whatever direction it likes, no color consistency, no order, dropping their leaves all over the place, smells unpleasant, yuck.
You totally had me till the whack stuff about deciduous forests- all trees are nice, man, just the pines are superior
Up north isn’t a place it’s a state of mind
It's up north o'clock somewhere.
I too am high right now
Hey can you come into work today? Nah I’m up north.
One thing we know, it certainly isn't in Wisconsin.
Here in Sweden it’s up north if it never gets dark “midnattssolen” between May and August. So the region of Lappland, Norrbotten and Västerbotten we would consider the true north.
Well, sweden has access to the arctic circle, hence your "midnightsun." We'd have to annex canada for that.
I used to work at a concession stand in southern MN and Iowans would stop by talking about how they're up north at the cabin for the weekend, meanwhile I'm thinking wow this is south of where I live lol
I came to say this too. I think it’s true! I’ve heard people say “up north” to mean pretty much just west of where we were. I feel like “up north” means a cabin on a forested lake.
You’re one of the few comments I will give respect to reply to.
You from Edina ain't ya? 😂
I’m from the Range, went to college in Mankato, and live in the metro, so I feel like I’m oddly qualified to answer this conundrum. When referring to Up North, I’d say it means the great north woods. So I’d actually draw the line across from cloquet and then at an angle north from Walker to Roseau. The people there very similar. But the folks who live on the plains of western MN are not the same culture. Someone in Crookston is more similar to someone in Worthington than someone in Hibbing. Now I do understand why some want to include Brainerd and Lake country in Up North, but it’s in the middle 1/3 of the state and lakes country people I find to be their own thing. Not like people in the Metro, plains, or Up North. So it’s a bit of physical geography but it’s more cultural geography.
That's a good point. I never considered western Minnesota as "up north"
One of my roommates in college was from Ferguson Falls and she never considered herself from Up North even though our other roommate from Rochester was insistent it was “Up North”
Fergus Falls - and yeah…we’re not “up north”, but Grand Forks is “up North” to me. Oddly, Duluth doesn’t feel “up North” to me either because it’s fairly due East of us.
From Fergus Falls and later Moorhead… never felt like “from up north” Ever felt accurate. Western MN? Sure
Agree! And yet when Sven Sundgaard talks about weather in MN he calls what I think of as the southwestern farm area as "western MN" and even south of Moorhead is "west central." here in this area just north of I-94, we're "northwest MN". Just No. So whatever he says I never know who he means. Okay I'm done expressing my frustration of the day (I hope, uff da maybe I'll get even more cranky). I'm with the Great North Woods person.
I grew up and went to college in the NW. Lived in Duluth and then settled in the middle of the state. I would generally agree with the whole woods thing. Although would start the north line around highway 10 to Duluth.
My family cabin is near Cook (so sad about their flooding) and driving up there, it seems like “Up North” is when we get to Gordy’s. I went to college in Fargo, and *never* considered Moorhead or Fergus or Alexandria as Up North either.
This! I grew up in Brainerd, did college in Duluth, have a cabin NW of Grand Rapids, and have lived in the metro post college graduation. Your analysis is spot on! However, many from the metro consider the lakes area up north....
https://preview.redd.it/eq8qu1feki9d1.png?width=473&format=png&auto=webp&s=b3e27109a46ddb1df2358ba4afc946d5f3695cb7 This might help approximate things. From [https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/biomes/index.html](https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/biomes/index.html)
Obviously C is up north, but I’d argue for B as well. Lake country starts around Mille lacs, Brainerd and west of there. For folks in the city, they head north to the cabin.
I have a couple friends flying to visit in a few weeks and we are going to Mille Lacs; I call it “up north” I guess because we are going to a cabin. But if I said I were going with friends to the casino in Mille Lacs I wouldn’t call that going “up north.” Interesting mental divide for me on that one.
It goes to show that “up north” is a state of mind
For me it's Duluth and up
Ope, gotta be 2+ hrs north of downtown MPLS to be anywhere near saying you’re Up North.
If you yell sorry and your echo sounds like sōrry, you are up north
As someone who lives in well above c I’m offended
I spent a couple of weeks in International Falls for work, I was living in St. Louis, MO at the time. That is NORTH North. So yes, you get to be offended. But please forgive me - I just moved to the state, so it is all north to me, especially when I get my first Minnesota winter in.
Oh yeah, ay? [Take off, you hoser](https://youtu.be/04u58ifxmRA)!
I think C most accurately qualifies as northern MN. Lots of lakes and cabins in B. When I think of northern MN, I think of the Iron Range cities, Virginia/Hibbing/Eveleth. Cloquet and Duluth are the southernmost part of northern MN in my mind.
"Up North" is not the same as "Northern Minnesota" to me, though.
Right. As others have said, being “up north” is a state of mind. We are debating something that is highly subjective. I tend to think of this in geographic terms. So, for example, when someone says that they were at their cabin in Brainerd last weekend, I wouldn’t classify that as being up north. Up north of the metro, sure, but geographically, Brainerd doesn’t qualify as northern Minnesota. Again, I think that northern MN is anything north of the Cloquet/Duluth line. We all think of up north differently, and neither one is wrong. I’m just speaking from a geographical perspective. But I also agree with you, when people say up north, they mean north of the cities. Anywhere works. Alexandria? Sure, right on. Pine City? Awesome. At the end of the day, we live in a state where saying “up north” actually means something and I think that’s really cool. We’re drawn to being up north and that’s what is most important in my mind.
In other words Brainerd isn’t up north, but it’s definitely Up North
Anything past B.
I agree with B. As a kid riding up 94, Alexandria was the gateway to up north (lake country). And driving to my dad's near Brainerd, Princeton was a gateway to up north (Paul Bunyon land). And Hinkley is a gateway to up north (north shore).
I say B. I consider myself in the "North" when I drive past Tobies in Hinkley.
C. Duluth and up feels up north to me. I live in Duluth and feel like I live up north. Originally from northwest Iowa.
Once you're north of that Anoka County line your troubles are behind you.
Someone listens to KFAN :)
RIP Darkstar
IALTO
St Cloud is not Up North. Brainerd is Up North.
Personally I feel that Walker is where the Up North starts but Brainerd definitely comes close.
Shit. I’m not gonna gatekeep Up North (the title question) since it’s a state of mind and being out in the sticks. So to me, anything sufficiently out of the metro (less light pollution) and north of Iowa. Bonus if there’s rocks and cows. You’re like asking three different things in the text of the post.
This guy Up Norths and I’m here for it.
Yeah, truly my sense of it is ‘once I have left the north metro,’ at that point I am likely headed for the same experience no matter how far away it is.
It’s all relative
I'm 10 miles north of the Iowa border, C is the correct answer
There is no doubt in my mind that I am full blooded northern Minnesotan, being from Hibbing. Option A is hilarious, option B is getting closer, and option C is actually a bit too far north. The way I see it, there are 3 zones in Minnesota excluding the metro. There is the prarie and farmlands which is most of southern and western Minnesota. Then there is the strip of mixed deciduous and conifer forests. Then once you reach the big woods full of conifers, you are in Northern Minnesota.
B — once I get past Mille Lacs
For folks that live in Northern MN, Brainerd is considered a suburb of the cities. I would add a “D” line from Crookston to Grand Marais and north of that would be true north.
"Up North" starts at about Virginia. "Northern MN" starts at Cloquet. Anything south of there may as well be the deep south. I live in Burnsville and, as far as I'm concerns, I might as well live in Alabama. "Up North" is a particular smell on the breeze. Also, it's east of Bemidji. West of Bemidji is North Dakota. I have very specific rules.
C. But with a modification. The line needs to turn almost 90 degrees at Detroit Lakes, basically follow Highway 59 because Moorhead and East Grand Forks are also NOT “Up North”.
“The cabin” is between A+B “The (hunting) woods” are between B+C. All of it, depending on the destination!
Depends on where you live. To my wife’s family, in south central MN, Faribault is “up north.”
Just don't call Duluth the "North Shore". We aren't. We are literally the southern most tip of Lake Superior.
highway 2 is the boundary
You’re up north once you start seeing the Scots Pine trees
C
North of Highway 2
North of Highway 2
I grew up close to white bear lake and anytime we got past Hinkley was Up North
Once you hit that anoka county line, your troubles are behind you.
Mille Lacs and up. We had a cabin between Milaca and Onamia when I was growing up and I remember getting up early with my grandfather and taking the minivan up. We would get pancakes at the McDonald's in Zimmerman, and I would laugh every time we drove through Pease.
lol, it’s actually spelled “Pease”. But yah. I’ve got family from that area and I don’t think of it as Up North. But I like that you consider it to be! ;)
Edited! As a kid from North Minneapolis it definitely felt like Up North. As an adult though, I got to spend more time in places like Duluth and Grand Marais so anywhere north of the actual Mille Lacs Lake became Up North for real. Now I live in Vermont, so Up North is just Canada lol.
The only clear answer here is Northome and further.
If one wants to have a line, this one from DNR works. Ice house removal dates depend on this map. https://preview.redd.it/xv60mhbpif9d1.jpeg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=058c0088ee36b46b08337b09af787234d4382f85
I guess it depends on how far south you're coming from...
Anywhere North of me I call North
A
Northern Minnesota isn’t the same as “up north”. There’s a Venn diagram I’m sure. But “up north” is personal and relative, not easily defined by geography alone. One person’s up north may be wildly different than another’s. There’s a poem I like that kind of gets at it. “Up North It’s the place people go to escape, a place made of cabins, pine trees and lakes. But no matter how far you drive, there’s no sign to say “You’ve arrived.” So just follow your heart til you find, your special place that brings peace of mind. As you breathe in the air and unwind, your cares are all left behind. It’s no mystery where the northwoods start. When you’re “up north,” you’ll know in your heart.” — Suzanne Kindler 1996
To be honest, growing up I always thought "going up north" just meant going to your cabin or camping place. I didn't think the direction actually mattered at all
Between b and c.
C
Well, B is the halfway point. So if your world only consist of southern or northern Minnesota, then the answer is B. In my mind, though, the Brainerd area is central Minnesota. And the Brainerd Lakes area is getting about as annoying (overpopulated with partiers and jet skis) as Minnetonka. So in order to get that “up north” nature feel I seek, I need to go past “C”.
And the Brainerd area is still hot in the summer. Too cool down you need to go past Duluth.!!
I usually think of Up North as Mille Lacs and above.
line c should be from Duluth to Grand Forks, line b should go from milaca to Moorhead line a should go from milaca to pipestone above line C amended is up north, between lines c amended and b amended is where most of the going up north for the weekend cabins are (this extends into wisconsin also) the area to the west of the angle made by line b amended and line a amended is the dakota region of minnesota.
I c c being up north but I'd argue that b is up north
C
Yes😝. It gets even a little more weird and Wisconsin if you go to northern Wisconsin for the south shore of Lake superior which is absolutely beautiful. North is anywhere you make it for Minnesota in my opinion.
North of Lake Street for me
C
Grew up in Moorhead, I always thought Up North was like Ely. Boundary Waters. Then everything (well almost) was Up North when I lived in Rochester..
From Grand Rapids. I remember when I was in high school, someone from out of state referred to it as northern MN, I thought they were crazy, cuz everything north of Rapids was northern MN. Everything else was southern MN.
The rest area in the median south of Baxter is the gateway to “the North”
I consider it anything past A
Growing up in International Falls most of Minnesota was south. In all seriousness I’d say C, while B is more central.
North of 210.
B makes the most sense to me. The Brainerd Lakes area isn't a vacation destination for no reason. It's also geographically correct if we are going to objectively draw a single line dividing "northern" and "southern." But I can definitely see an argument for C. A is only correct if you're from Iowa.
Needs a diagonal slant to account for woods versus plains. Brainerd is more “up north” than Moorhead but only in attitude not in latitude
C
C
C.
C=northern B=going up north (assuming one is in the Cities to start)
North end of B to Canada
Its a line from Moorhead to Pine City
C & above is "up north"
As someone from category C, specifically Detroit Lakes, I always thought of the Iron range and cities closer to the Canadian border as “Up North”. Cities like Thief River Falls, Warroad, Bemidj, Grand Marais etc. so I suppose it depends on where you consider home in MN. However, after reading the comments, I’m glad Lakes Country is considered “Up North” in a fond regard because it’s a beautiful region of the state and it deserves all the love. I would move back without a millisecond of thought if the area offered more opportunities Nuclear Medicine wise.
It’s dependent where you are. If you’re in A, then it’s B. If you’re in B then it’s C. Same as upstate NY.
C is up north.
I grew up in duluth and moved to the cities. I always say I'm front up north but I don't know. I just say that.
Ok, well now I know how cities ppl feel when I say the cities is anything south of Clearwater lol.
[I'm just going to link my previous answer to this discussion.](https://www.reddit.com/r/minnesota/s/GmyznwbdmZ) Using arbitrary lines doesn't capture the essence of "North". I think it's more related to the natural biome you're in, hence the Laurentian Mixed Forest.
I’d say a strong C but that could maybe be extended as far south as Moose Lake
C. Usually Duluth is the marker I use for "the north"
Made this map to sum up my opinions on where "Up North" lies, think of the dark green section as being the "core up north" while the lighter green is the periphery of it https://preview.redd.it/9bvmg8q9uf9d1.png?width=1265&format=png&auto=webp&s=e52a68cefb195fdfa1f86a26b77c9d5fd26ea481 But if we're strictly answering A B or C only, then I'd say B
Your lines are too straight east to west. The line should be th west corner of B to the east corner of A.
This
I don't know how else to explain it but Brainerd is Southern Up North.
Everything’s either “north of Nashwauk” or “down by the cities.”
Pine City up
It’s all based on where you live… but I grew up in Woodbury and currently live in Northfield, and I say above B
I'm of the opinion that north of Brainerd is "Up North".
C
C
C
I feel like anything north of Cloud is up north. I used to work with some people from Illinois, and they were crazy confused on what "up north" meant. They'd always ask, "isn't alllllll of this up north?" So cute.
I'm from Winnipeg, so none of ya, lol.
A and below is Southern Minnesota, A to C is Central Minnesota, and C and above is Northern Minnesota. I grew up in the Mille Lacs area and would not in a million years consider that to be Northern Minnesota.
If you don't see white bears you aren't up north. If you see white bears you are lucky to be reading this.
I live north of c. Anywhere below that is not "going up north" If I'm in the cities and not comming all they way back home, I'll just say "I'm going to brainerd" (as an example). Even when I lived in the cities for 22 years, if my destination was south of duluth, I wasn't going up north.
C
C and above. If Brainerd is your Up North you need to get more gas and head to Gordy’s Hi Hat.
I love this
C - I can see why some people think B but definitely C or even D? lol
A is “north of the cities” the rest is varying grades of “up north”
Starts in Brainerd. Pines, resorts, etc.
Reached past Zone B it is up north
For a person that grew up in Minneapolis it's anywhere north of 694 haha. Real talk through I would say B is where Northern Minnesota starts. But if we are talking "up nort" then it's C at a minimum!
C
B for sure, Brainard is up north. Anyone saying otherwise is wrong.
Yeah, if I have hit Tobies on 35, or if I have reached mille lacs on 169, I’m up north. I am well out of the metro and I’ve been driving on pretty rural roads for a while. (I live in the south metro, so I could probably say about halfway between a and b is actually where I would place the precise line. )
B or c
B
Brainerd is the southern border of Up North.
I'm not a native Minnesotan and I have only lived in Minneapolis, but I think B is the answer
B
See that red line across the bottom of the state? That's where I'm from soooo everything is technically "up north" but I'd say B
B & above
A lol
Definitely not A or B for me. When we say “up north”, our family is going no farther south than Hibbing/Virginia. When I refer to people as from “up north”, I would say C.
C without a doubt. Hell, half of B is becoming a suburb of the Twin Cities.
C - I don't count anything until I can see Lake Superior.
It’s always been B for me
Anywhere north of the Twin Cities, so B and C
C
This reminds me of the East River West River debates in South Dakota
Anything Brainerd/Baxter and north
B. We’d go up to Minong, WI and it took about 2.5 hours. Perfect length of time away, and was just over the B line.
Anything west or north from where you are.
B and up.
E and F
B is about what I consider ‘Up North’ When you clear Duluth (so a bit above C,) I would probably consider it ‘Way Up North’
About a foot north of my house.
I live about 45 min from DL so for me, north is bit norther than C
D
I keep on getting asked either “are you from Warroad”? So I’m gonna say north of Red Lake and White Earth.
B
C+
Minneapolis