How Far Away From A McDonald's Are You At Any Given Moment?

It's easy to say that no one is bigger than McDonald's in the restaurant business. There are more than 13,000 locations across the United States, making it seem as if you threw a pebble, it would bounce off those golden arches. Only one state capital in the entire U.S. doesn't have a McDonald's — Montpelier, Vermont. But if you want to get away from McDonald's, you had best head out west.

The farthest you can be away from McDonald's is in Northwest Nevada, in a strip of wilderness that might be otherwise unrecognizable. For the brave traveler and those tired of fast food, you'll need longitudes and latitudes to find the exact spot. There isn't a marker or anything to note its significance, but it's located at 45.45955,-101.91356.
Technically speaking, the McFarthest Spot, as some call it, is only 120 miles away from the nearest McDonald's. But that's only if you're able to drive in a straight line. Since roads often don't, you'd have to travel 135 miles before you could get that Big Mac or quarter-pounder. However, the McFarthest Spot is a bit fluid, so Nevada shouldn't get too comfy. Things are bound to change in the future.

Nevada is only the most recent point for the McFarthest Spot. The original, in 2009, is located in South Dakota. Food writer Stephen Von Worley discovered this by examining all the McDonald's locations. Worley contacted the data company AggData, which supplied him with the geolocations of all 13,000 McDonald's locations in each state. The spot in South Dakota was 107 miles from the nearest one. Worley wrote on his blog, "For maximum Mcsparseness, we look westward, towards the deepest, darkest holes in our map."

It makes a certain amount of sense why the two McFarthest Spots are located out west. South Dakota isn't exactly known for its booming population, with less than one million residents. While Nevada has three million people, its biggest population is in Las Vegas, with part of the state devoted to remote deserts. Why did the McFarthest Spot move? Well, it's all thanks to a McDonald's closing in Nevada, which created a longer distance to the closest location, a difference of 13 miles. The fact that the distance is only around 100 miles shows McDonald's dominance in the fast food industry.

While White Castle may have been the first fast food franchise in the United States, McDonald's has arguably been its most successful. McDonald's makes more than $9 billion annually in the United States alone. Businessman Ray Kroc was one of the keys behind the company's success, seeing McDonald's become a dominant force in the restaurant industry during the 1900s. One of the ways that the restaurant makes money is by franchising to individual owners for a large sum. This helps explain why McDonald's has become so widespread in its country of origin.

However, if you're truly trying to escape McDonald's, you may consider going abroad. While McDonald's does have restaurants in many countries, it doesn't have restaurants in every country — at least not yet. In particular, several African countries like Botswana and the Middle East, like Iran, lack a McDonald's. There are some parts of Asia without locations as well. When it comes to the country that may be most removed from McDonald's, you should turn your attention to Iceland. So, while the McFarthest Spot may be pretty far, it's not the farthest you can get away from McDonald's.