The 200-Year-Old Geography Mistake That Messed Up the US-Canada Border

By BRIGHT SIDE

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The Alaska Panhandle's bizarre, ocean-blocking border is actually the result of a massive geographical mistake made by two European superpowers in 1825. Diplomats blindly signed a treaty to draw a boundary along the crest of coastal mountains they had never even seen. This seemed like a perfectly neat solution until explorers realized that the continuous mountain ridge they agreed upon literally did not exist. Instead of a clear dividing line, the region is a chaotic, impassable patchwork of random peaks and deep fjords that makes daily life incredibly difficult for modern residents. Click the video to explore the wild history behind this cartographic illusion and see how a completely fictional mountain range accidentally gave the United States control of Canada's coastline. Animation is created by Bright Side. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/ Check our Bright Side podc

Tags: alaska boundary dispute, alaska panhandle border, american history, bizarre borders, brightside, brightsideglobal, canada blocked from ocean, cartographic illusion, coastal mountains illusion, curiosities, earth, fake mountains map, geography documentary, geopolitics history, historical geography mistakes, map mistakes, mystery, planet, russian british empire 1825 treaty, southeast alaska fjords

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