UfaBizPhoto // Shutterstock The strong bond between humans and water has been portrayed in literature, music, and paintings for centuries. Owning a boat and living close to water is the ultimate life goal of many. The United States has unparalleled bodies of water that allow inhabitants of each of the 50 states to have, if they wish, a close connection with oceans, lakes, lagoons, waterfalls, or rivers. From Niagara Falls to the picture-perfect beaches of Hawaii, and from the majesty of the Great Lakes to the melody-inspiring banks of the Mississippi River, Americans enjoy a privileged geography when it comes to their proximity to iconic bodies of water. GetMyBoat ranked states by their concentrations of registered boats per 100 residents, using data from a 2018 RTI International survey. The survey, which was funded by the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Coast Guard, is the most recent and most comprehensive look at recreational boat ownership in the country. On average nationwide, there are only 11 registered boats per 100 residents. But in some states, there are many more. It may come as a surprise that Florida, California, and Hawaii are nowhere near the top 10 of the ranking. States on the East Coast, and some in the South and Midwest, rank higher. But the Sunshine State is second only to Michigan in terms of how many boats its residents have registered. Read on to find out where boating and boat ownership are most common. #51. Hawaii Billy McDonald // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 2.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 36,000 (rank: #51) #50. Nevada thetahoeguy // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 2.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 93,000 (rank: #46) #49. Texas Sean Pavone // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 3.1 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 922,000 (rank: #8) #48. California Wirestock Creators // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 3.3 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.3 million (rank: #4) #47. New Mexico Brenda Landdeck // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 3.3 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 70,000 (rank: #49) #46. Arizona PHOTOSHOOT1 // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 3.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 260,000 (rank: #35) #45. New Jersey FotosForTheFuture // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 3.6 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 334,000 (rank: #31) #44. Illinois blewisphotography // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 4.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 566,000 (rank: #15) #43. Ohio buyhighsellcheap // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 4.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 573,000 (rank: #14) #42. Utah Fotoluminate LLC // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 5.0 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 169,000 (rank: #41) #41. Kansas marekuliasz // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 5.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 172,000 (rank: #40) #40. Massachusetts Matthew Botelho // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 6.3 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 442,000 (rank: #24) #39. Pennsylvania Georgina Burrows // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 6.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 842,000 (rank: #9) #38. New York woodsnorthphoto // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 6.7 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.3 million (rank: #3) #37. Tennessee Marcus E Jones // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 6.8 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 476,000 (rank: #22) #36. Virginia Sean Pavone // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 6.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 595,000 (rank: #12) #35. Georgia Marcus E Jones // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 783,000 (rank: #11) #34. Washington SvetlanaSF // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 560,000 (rank: #18) #33. Kentucky Angela N Perryman // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 327,000 (rank: #33) #32. Mississippi Sabrina Janelle Gordon // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.4 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 217,000 (rank: #38) #31. North Carolina Kyle J Little // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 799,000 (rank: #10) #30. Indiana Lewis Photo Studio // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.7 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 523,000 (rank: #19) #29. Florida Andriy Blokhin // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 7.7 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.7 million (rank: #2) #28. Maryland Christian Hinkle // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 8.0 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 491,000 (rank: #21) #27. Oklahoma Alonzo J. Adams // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 8.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 330,000 (rank: #32) #26. Alabama Darryl Vest // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 8.3 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 419,000 (rank: #26) #25. Colorado Kristilee Jones // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 8.7 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 507,000 (rank: #20) #24. Missouri Water Street // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 9.1 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 561,000 (rank: #17) #23. Wyoming JFunk // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 9.3 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 54,000 (rank: #50) #22. Connecticut James Andrews1 // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 9.3 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 339,000 (rank: #30) #21. Louisiana l i g h t p o e t // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 9.7 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 446,000 (rank: #23) #20. South Dakota GLF Media // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 9.8 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 89,000 (rank: #47) #19. Rhode Island Mary Terriberry // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 10.6 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 116,000 (rank: #45) #18. Iowa Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 10.6 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 340,000 (rank: #29) #17. North Dakota FOTOGRIN // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 10.8 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 84,000 (rank: #48) #16. Arkansas i_photos // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 11.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 342,000 (rank: #28) #15. Idaho Kirk Fisher // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 12.8 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 249,000 (rank: #36) #14. Delaware Khairil Azhar Junos // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 13.4 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 136,000 (rank: #42) #13. Oregon Ian Dewar Photography // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 13.6 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 577,000 (rank: #13) #12. West Virginia Malachi Jacobs // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 14.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 264,000 (rank: #34) #11. Michigan SNEHIT PHOTO // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 17.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.7 million (rank: #1) #10. Alaska Claudine Van Massenhove // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 17.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 131,000 (rank: #43) #9. Minnesota gmstockstudio // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 17.9 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.0 million (rank: #7) #8. Montana Butler Stock Photography // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 18.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 204,000 (rank: #39) #7. Vermont Erika J Mitchell // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 18.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 118,000 (rank: #44) #6. Wisconsin John Touscany // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 18.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.1 million (rank: #6) #5. South Carolina Connor D. Ryan // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 20.7 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 1.1 million (rank: #5) #4. Nebraska Adam Melnyk // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 28.8 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 566,000 (rank: #15) #3. New Hampshire Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 29.0 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 405,000 (rank: #27) #2. Maine haveseen // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 31.5 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 436,000 (rank: #25) #1. Washington D.C. RaksyBH // Shutterstock – Concentration of boats: 36.2 registered boats per 100 residents – Number of boats: 243,000 (rank: #37) Data reporting by Paxtyn Merten. Photo selection by Clarese Moller. This story originally appeared on GetMyBoat and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
States with the most boat owners
