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Cities like Spokane and Boise seem to be in between - I would say Spokane is West Coast though and Boise is Mountain West.
I think you can either divide them on a state by state basis - that is, all of California, Oregon and Washington are West Coast, and the states east of there are Mountain West (though Nevada could swing either way imo), or you can divide them at the Sierras and Cascades.
Broad brush - In the Cascades and Sierra, at the point where you enter a reliably snowy (Sunset Western Gardening Guide Zone 3 or lower) climate zone. Anything east of that line is far enough removed from the Coast as to be part of the normal part of the US. Everything West of it is "different" in both the positive and negative sense of that word.
Nevada is in the Pacific time zone, so most of us locals consider ourselves to be West Coast (not Mountain West). Then again, I can only really speak for Southern Nevada....the Northern part of the state may have a different mindset.
Nevada is in the Pacific time zone, so most of us locals consider ourselves to be West Coast (not Mountain West). Then again, I can only really speak for Southern Nevada....the Northern part of the state may have a different mindset.
Arizona is on Mountain time for half a year and Pacific time the other half.
[quote=MimzyMusic;8995188]...that is, all of California, Oregon and Washington are West Coast.../quote]
There's a lot of folks in eastern Oregon and Washington that'd argue with you. Many of those places have more in common with, say, towns in Wyoming than Seattle or Portland--politically, way of life, and making a living. In fact, eastern Washington and Oregon is part of what's called the "Intermountain West", same as Nevada, as it's between two major mountain chains.
Spokane is different enough from the west side there have been times in Washington's past where there has been some discussion of Spokane seceding from Washington and forming its own state. The last time I remember such talk as serious was early 1970s...talk of joining the "Inland Empire", eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and parts of western Montana into a state. "Franklin" for a name was suggested.
...that is, all of California, Oregon and Washington are West Coast.../quote]
There's a lot of folks in eastern Oregon and Washington that'd argue with you. Many of those places have more in common with, say, towns in Wyoming than Seattle or Portland--politically, way of life, and making a living. In fact, eastern Washington and Oregon is part of what's called the "Intermountain West", same as Nevada, as it's between two major mountain chains.
Spokane is different enough from the west side there have been times in Washington's past where there has been some discussion of Spokane seceding from Washington and forming its own state. The last time I remember such talk as serious was early 1970s...talk of joining the "Inland Empire", eastern Washington, northern Idaho, and parts of western Montana into a state. "Franklin" for a name was suggested.
Agreed. In terms of climate, culture, and politics, Oregon and Washington east of the Cascades has more in common with Idaho (and other parts of the Mountain West) than with western Oregon and Washington. Western Oregon and Washington are greener (from all of the rain) and more politically liberal, while east of the Cascades, the land is a bit more brown and the people more conservative.
This discussion really does conjure up "The Nine Nations of North America."
"Ecoptopia" and "Mexamerica" are vastly different than "The Empty Quarter."
An "Empty Quarter" place along US-395 has more in common with other "Empty Quarter" places such as Pocatello, Riverton, Prescott, and Gunnison than it would with even Sacramento or San Bernardino.
Interestingly, I think that during the 28 years since that book was written, "Ecoptopia" and the furthest Western portion of "Mexamerica" have been merging together - or put somewhat differently "Mexamerica" has fragmented into a more conservative main portion, east of SoCal, and a more liberal portion, comprised of SoCal.
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