The Pacific Northwest

The Pacific Northwest starts from Oregon, past Washington and British Colombia, to Alaska. It is also refers to the coastal region that borders the Pacific Ocean. Also because of the ocean the temperatures are moderate with mild winters and cool summers. The two major mountain ranges are the Cascade Ranges and the Coastal Ranges. The ranges create orographic precipitation, which is the warm moist air condensing on one side of the mountain creating rainfall, while the other side has minor precipitation. This is similar to California's Rocky Mountains which blocks the moist ocean air and causes a rain shadow on the Great Basin. With large amounts of wheat farming the Pacific Northwest has many craft breweries. Alaska is isolated from the rest of the 48 states and relies on air and sea transportation. It is the largest state in the United States, being more than three times larger than California. More than half of this land is owned by the federal government.