The Intermountain West is a region of North America lying between the Rocky Mountains to the east and the Cascades and Sierra Nevada to the west. It is also called the Intermountain Region.

[edit] Topography

Many of the Intermountain Region's mountains' streams and rivers never reach the sea. Instead they flow into brackish lakes or into desert sinks. Only some rivers are able to reach the ocean. Some portions are made productive by irrigation systems. Cattle ranching is another process used.

[edit] Climate

The climate of the Intermountain Region is affected by location and elevation. The winters depend on location. In the southern parts, the winters are short, warm, and have little precipitation. In the northern portions, the winters are cold and moist, with hot and dry summers. This portion lacks precipitation as well, but the weather is moderate.

[edit] Vegetation

The vegetation ranges from sparse grasslands and sagebrush to other plants that are able to survive in desert or semi-desert conditions in basin-lands. Some higher elevation areas have isolated stands of pine, cedar, and aspen tree forests. Cultivated crops include corn, potatoes, sugar beets, grass hay, and alfalfa. The latter two crops are used for livestock feed.

[edit] Demographics and sociology

A large portion of the Intermountain West is most associated with Latter Day Saints (LDS) settlements, and the region now has the highest ratio of LDS members in the United States. That particular portion of the Intermountain West is sometimes called the Mormon Corridor.

Because of its low population density and diverse economy, the survivalist writers James Wesley Rawles ^[1] and Joel Skousen ^[2] both recommend the region as a preferred locale for "strategic relocation"^[3] and for building survival retreats.

[edit] Intermountain states

The intermountain states are generally considered to be Idaho, Utah, Nevada and Arizona, as well as portions of eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, northwestern New Mexico, western Colorado, southwestern Wyoming and northwestern Montana. The intermountain states are so named because they lie between (or at least amidst) the Rocky Mountains, the Sierra Nevada and the Cascades. Large areas of these states are less mountainous than typical of the Rocky Mountain region. The intermountain states are included among those states considered as the Mountain States.

[edit] References

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