Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

Rocketgirl8097 t1_jb21h5r wrote

Reply to comment by Karuna56 in I’m very fascinated by the geographic diversity of WA alone by Starfox_2020

Technically though, we have no deserts. We have too much precipitation to be classified as such. What we have is shrub-steppe. And none of it is high elevation. About 1600 ft ASL at most. Southeastern part of Oregon - now that's high desert. 4500 ft ASL at Burns.

2

OhCrapImBusted t1_jb2i8c1 wrote

Where I live (Pullman, WA) my house is 2450 ft ASL. There is a definite drop on HWY 26 around Hooper (historical route of the Palouse River), but it goes back up quite a bit after Washtucna. From there to Kittitas its extremely dry, and isn't viable for farming without irrigation.

It may not be "High Desert" by definition, but it is Desert nonetheless.

3

Rocketgirl8097 t1_jb2lo4o wrote

It is desert-like. It is not desert. It is shrub-steppe. There are grasses, sage, phlox, and many other plants that grow naturally. You don't have that in a desert. The only deserts in the u.s. are the Mohave, Great Basin, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan.

2

OceanPoet87 t1_jb2s7mr wrote

Much of Central WA is semi arid, you're right... no desert. I'm in a shadowed area somewhat, but even going 10-20 miles west, the precipitation drops dramatically as you go towards the basin.

1