Portal:Pacific Northwest

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The Pacific Northwest Portal

P:PNW

The Pacific Northwest (PNW), sometimes referred to as Cascadia, is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common conception includes the U.S. states of Oregon, Washington, northern Idaho, and the Canadian province of British Columbia. Some broader conceptions reach north into Alaska and Yukon, south into northern California, and east into western Montana. Other conceptions may be limited to the coastal areas west of the Cascade and Coast mountains.

The Northwest Coast is the coastal region of the Pacific Northwest, and the Northwest Plateau (also commonly known as "the Interior" in British Columbia), is the inland region. The term "Pacific Northwest" should not be confused with the Northwest Territory (also known as the Great Northwest, a historical term in the United States) or the Northwest Territories of Canada. The region is sometimes referred to as Cascadia, which, depending on the borders, may or may not be the same thing as the Pacific Northwest.

The region's largest metropolitan areas are Greater Seattle, Washington, with 4 million people; Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, with 2.84 million people; and Greater Portland, Oregon, with 2.5 million people.

The culture of the Pacific Northwest is influenced by the Canada–United States border, which the United States and the United Kingdom established at a time when the region's inhabitants were composed mostly of indigenous peoples. Two sections of the border—one along the 49th parallel south of British Columbia and one between the Alaska Panhandle and northern British Columbia—have left a great impact on the region. According to Canadian historian Ken Coates, the border has not merely influenced the Pacific Northwest—rather, "the region's history and character have been determined by the boundary". (Full article...)

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Mount Hood reflected in Mirror Lake

Mount Hood is an active stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the Pacific coast and rests in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located about 50 mi (80 km) east-southeast of Portland, on the border between Clackamas and Hood River counties. In addition to being Oregon's highest mountain, it is one of the loftiest mountains in the nation based on its prominence, and it offers the only year-round lift-served skiing in North America.

The height assigned to Mount Hood's snow-covered peak has varied over its history. Modern sources point to three different heights: 11,249 ft (3,429 m), a 1991 adjustment of a 1986 measurement by the U.S. National Geodetic Survey (NGS), 11,240 ft (3,426 m) based on a 1993 scientific expedition, and 11,239 ft (3,425.6 m) of slightly older origin. The peak is home to 12 named glaciers and snowfields. It is the highest point in Oregon and the fourth highest in the Cascade Range. Mount Hood is considered the Oregon volcano most likely to erupt,

though based on its history, an explosive eruption is unlikely. Still, the odds of an eruption in the next 30 years are estimated at between 3 and 7%, so the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) characterizes it as "potentially active", but the mountain is informally considered dormant. (Full article...)

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Knight in 2010

Philip Hampson Knight (born February 24, 1938) is an American billionaire business magnate who is the co-founder and chairman emeritus of Nike, Inc., a global sports equipment and apparel company. He was previously its chairman and CEO. As of December 2023, Forbes estimated his net worth at $45.0 billion. He is also the owner of the stop motion film production company Laika. Knight is a graduate of the University of Oregon and the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He was part of the track and field club under coach Bill Bowerman at the University of Oregon with whom he would later co-found Nike.

Knight has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to each of his alma maters, as well as Oregon Health & Science University. He has donated over $2 billion to these three institutions. (Full article...)

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Largest cities of the Pacific Northwest

City	State/Province	Population	Metropolitan Area	Urban Area
Seattle	Washington	704,000^[1]	3,905,026^[2]	3,059,393^[3]
Portland	Oregon	658,347^[2]	2,753,168^[2]	1,849,898^[3]
Vancouver	British Columbia	631,486^[4]	2,737,698^[5]	2,264,823^[6]
Surrey	British Columbia	598,530^[4]	^{[n 1]}	^{[n 1]}
Burnaby	British Columbia	257,926^[4]	^{[n 1]}	^{[n 1]}
Boise	Idaho	226,570^[7]	691,423^[2]	349,684^[3]
Spokane	Washington	222,081^[1]	573,493 ^[8]^[9]	486,225^[3]
Richmond	British Columbia	216,046^[4]	^{[n 1]}	^{[n 1]}
Tacoma	Washington	198,397^[1]	^{[n 2]}	^{[n 2]}
Vancouver	Washington	175,673^[1]	^{[n 3]}	^{[n 3]}

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The following are images from various Pacific Northwest-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The immense floods created channels that are presently dry, such as the Drumheller Channels (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 2The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens (from Cascade Range)
Image 3Image of the Juan de Fuca Plate that produced the magnitude 8.7–9.2 Cascadia earthquake in 1700. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 4None of the multiple possible definitions of the Pacific Northwest is universally accepted. This map shows three possibilities: (1) The shaded area shows the historical Oregon Country. (2) The green line shows the Cascadia bioregion. (3) The labeled states and provinces include Washington, Idaho, Oregon and British Columbia. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 5Map of "megacity", showing population density (shades of yellow/brown), highways (red), and major railways (black). Public land shown in shades of green. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 6Mountain goat on Wallaby Peak in the North Cascades (from Cascade Range)
Image 7Lassen Peak in the California Cascades. Southernmost volcano in the Cascade Range and part of Lassen Volcanic National Park (from Cascade Range)
Image 8The Golden Hinde on Vancouver Island was formed by erosion carving into basalt. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 9The North Cascades are heavily eroded by glaciers (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 10The Pacific Northwest from outer space. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 11U.S. Navy Lieutenant Charles Wilkes' 1841 Map of the Oregon Territory from "Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition". Philadelphia: 1845 (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 12Mount Edziza, a large shield volcano in northwestern British Columbia (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 13The Columbia Gorge marks where the Columbia River splits the Cascade Range between the states of Washington and Oregon. (from Cascade Range)
Image 14The Cascades range (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 15Magnetic anomalies around the Juan de Fuca and Gorda Ridges, off the west coast of North America, color coded by age. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 16The Boundary Trail section of the PNT in Horseshoe Basin, Pasayten Wilderness (from Pacific Northwest Trail)
Image 17The Pacific Northwest from space (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 18The Coast Mountains are heavily eroded by glaciers, including Mount Waddington (far background, center). (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 19Lava Butte, Oregon, erupted roughly 5000 years BCE (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 20Pacific Northwest Trail at Blanchard Mountain in Washington (from Pacific Northwest Trail)
Image 21Lumen Field, home of Seattle Seahawks and Sounders FC (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 22Map of the Anahim Volcanic Belt centers. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 23HMS Discovery was the lead ship used by George Vancouver (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 24A man in Portland, Oregon with Cascadian flag on International Workers' Day, 2012 (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 25Mount St. Helens erupts on May 18, 1980 (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 26Mount Hood is the tallest point in the U.S. state of Oregon. (from Cascade Range)
Image 27Oval-leaf blueberry on Mount Pilchuck (from Cascade Range)
Image 28State Route 302 after the Nisqually earthquake (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 29A map of the Snake River Plain, showing its smooth topography (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 30Map of the Garibaldi Volcanic Belt centers. (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 31The Coquihalla River in the Canadian Cascades (from Cascade Range)
Image 32West side view of Mount Shuksan in summer as seen from Artist Point in Washington (from Cascade Range)
Image 33Public transportation is used in the Pacific Northwest region. Vancouver's SkyTrain rapid transit system achieves daily ridership of over 500,000 passengers per day on weekdays and the overall transit ridership levels in the Metro Vancouver area rank third in North America per capita. (from Pacific Northwest)
Image 34Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail overview map (from Pacific Northwest Trail)
Image 35Geology of the Cascade Range-related plate tectonics. (from Cascade Range)
Image 36May 1915 Lassen Peak eruption column (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)
Image 37The Columbia River basalts cover portions of three states (from Geology of the Pacific Northwest)

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... that James A. Merriman was the only Black graduate from Rush Medical College in 1902 and the first African-American physician to practice medicine in Portland?
... that when John Emmitt was traveling to the Oregon Territory in 1852 along the Oregon Trail, two of his three children died of cholera and were buried along the route?
... that Washington state TV station KTRX went on the air in January 1958—and failed to make it to the end of the year?
... that LaVonne Griffin-Valade, the Oregon Secretary of State, has published four crime fiction novels?
... that for 25 years after an attempt to explode a whale went awry, the Oregon TV station that filmed it regularly fielded requests for its footage?
... that after serving as the speaker of the Oregon Territory House of Representatives, Lafayette Cartee moved to the Idaho Territory where he became a well-known horticulturalist?