Washington’s Regions Topic 1

The Regions

Coastal Range Region Encompasses basically the Olympic Peninsula Borders the Pacific Ocean to the West The Strait of Juan de Fuca to the North Puget Sound to the East The Columbia River to the South Holds the Olympic Mountains, Olympic National Forest Not much in the way of industry or large cities Rely mainly on tourism and the environment Lumber mills have closed and the fishing industry is much smaller

The Puget Sound Lowlands Made up of the land between Puget Sound and the Cascade Mountains from Oregon in the South to Canada In the North Also known as the “I-5 Corridor” after the freeway that runs through it This region holds the bulk of Washington’s population and big cities Includes Seattle, Bellingham, Tacoma, Vancouver, Olympia, Everett, and Burlington! Holds the bulk of the states manufacturing industry as well Large sea ports, airports, companies such as Boeing and Microsoft Also holds some agricultural lands Such as the Skagit Valley, and Chehalis and Cowlitz River Valley’s to the South of Tacoma Tourism in this region includes the States Capital city of Olympia, Seattle and the San Juan Islands

Cascade Mountain Region This region encompasses the Cascade Mountain Range Here you will find intense geographic features as well as some of the natural features Washington is known for Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, Mt. Baker etc. Lake Chelan is part of this region Steep hills and rapidly changing weather Cold and snow in the winter poses problems for travel, but is perfect for snow sports Summer hiking and camping is popular Includes North Cascades and Mt. Rainier National Parks

The Rocky Mountain Region Located in the Northeastern corner of the State and is also known as the Okanogan Highlands Steep, rocky foothills of the Rocky Mountains Sparsely populated and these small towns rely on tourism Mining, farming, ranching and to an extent lumbering is done here

Columbia Plateau This region encompasses most of Eastern Washington The high, flat plateau actually extends geographically into Eastern Oregon and Idaho Very dry with limited vegetation including grassland and desert sagebrush Much of the land is irrigated for farming Apples, cherries, grapes, corn and alfalfa Major cities include Spokane, Moses Lake, Wenatchee, Walla Walla, Pullman the Tri- Cities (Richland, Pasco, and Kennewick) Grand Coulee Dam is a major point of interest in Eastern Washington and is located in this region