The Region

A land of prairie and desert, mountains and canyons, cactus and sage.

Dangerous and dramatic

A land of tears and dances, song and mystery, tradition and remembrance.

A land of myths and truths

Like pieces of fallen cloud, the sheep are scattered on the hillside. In the summer’s hot wind and the winter’s cold, the woman herds them. To the hills in the day, to the corral at night, To fresh grass and water she herds them. A storm drapes itself around the mountain. The sheep are restless. They scatter. The woman tries to gather them. She cannot. She kneels in the dust of the land to pray. The sheep come together. The sheep are sheared. The wool stands in fat bags against the hogan wall. Now the carding begins. Short, quick strokes. Fibers straight, dirt combed out. Now the spinning begins. Turning, turning, turning, turning of the spindle While knowing fingers pull the wool into a strong, straight thread. Now the washing begins; now the dyeing begins.

The Southwest Region has four states. Texas Arizona Oklahoma New Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico forms a border on the southeast side of the region.

Mexico lies directly to the south of the Southwest Region. The Rio Grande provides a natural border between the USA and Mexico.

Land features - Most of the Southwest is covered with plains and deserts. Majestic mountains and colorful canyons are also found in the Southwest.

The Chichuahuan Desert spreads from Mexico into Texas and New Mexico.

The Sonoran Deserts covers most of southern Arizona.

A mesa is a hill with a flat top. Mesa, in Spanish means table.

A butte is a steep hill of rock, like a mesa, but smaller.

Canyons are deep valleys with steep sides. Canyons are formed by water erosion.

You know the most famous canyon in the Southwest!

The climate of the Southwest varies. The Gulf Coast is hot and humid.

The mountain areas are cold and snowy in the winter.

But most of the Southwest is very dry and hot.

The Rain Shadow Much of the Southwest lies to the west of the Rocky Mountains. The mountains block most of the moisture that would come from the Pacific Ocean.

When it does rain, the rain comes in a cloudburst.

The water washes everything in its path Arroyos are ditches created by the rushing water.

But don’t be fooled by the dry ground. Underneath the desert is a wealth of water. Underground water is called aquifers.

The water is tapped through irrigation systems.

I’m sure you have many questions that were not answered. Such as What are the natural resources? What are the main industries? Who are people that settled the Southwest?

Well – there’s only one things left to do.