Western Nevada

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Western Nevada
Reno skyline.JPG
Map of Nevada highlighting Western Nevada.png
The counties most commonly associated with Western Nevada with Churchill County not shown in blue
CountryFlag of the United States.svg  United States
StateFlag of Nevada.svg  Nevada
Counties CarsonCityNVseal.png Carson City
Flag of Churchill County, Nevada.gif Churchill
Douglas
Flag of Lyon County, Nevada.gif Lyon
Storey
Washoe County, Nevada seal.png Washoe
Largest cityFlag of Reno, Nevada.svg Reno

Western Nevada (WNV) is a region and the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Nevada that includes Reno, Carson City, Carson Valley and Virginia City. Lyon County and Churchill County are sometimes also referred to as part of Western Nevada. [1]

In geography, regions are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics, human impact characteristics, and the interaction of humanity and the environment. Geographic regions and sub-regions are mostly described by their imprecisely defined, and sometimes transitory boundaries, except in human geography, where jurisdiction areas such as national borders are defined in law.

Nevada State of the United States of America

Nevada is a state in the Western United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th most extensive, the 32nd most populous, but the 9th least densely populated of the U.S. states. Nearly three-quarters of Nevada's people live in Clark County, which contains the Las Vegas–Paradise metropolitan area where three of the state's four largest incorporated cities are located. Nevada's capital is Carson City.

Reno, Nevada City in Nevada, United States

Reno is a city in the U.S. state of Nevada, located in the northwestern part of the state, approximately 22 miles (35 km) from Lake Tahoe. Known as "The Biggest Little City in the World", Reno is known for its casino industry. Reno is the county seat of Washoe County. The city sits in a high desert river valley at the foot of the Sierra Nevada and its downtown area occupies a valley informally known as the Truckee Meadows. The city is named after Union Major General Jesse L. Reno, who was killed in action during the American Civil War at the Battle of South Mountain on Fox's Gap.

Contents

The region is the second most populous in the state (the first being Southern Nevada containing the Las Vegas Valley) with between 530,000 and 615,000 residents, depending on whether Lyon and Churchill counties are included. It is also the historic population center of Nevada, with the state capital in Carson City, the University of Nevada in Reno and several state historic parks, notably Mormon Station State Historic Park in Genoa, the state's first permanent European settlement.

Southern Nevada Place in Nevada, United States

Southern Nevada (SNV) is a region and the southern portion of the U.S. state of Nevada which includes the Las Vegas Valley. It also includes the areas in and around Pahrump and Pioche. Tonopah and Hawthorne are sometimes also referred to as part of Southern Nevada, but all organizations based in the Las Vegas area, such as the Southern Nevada Health District, effectively limit the term to Clark County.

Las Vegas Valley Metropolitan area in Nevada

The Las Vegas Valley is a major metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The state's largest urban agglomeration, it is part of the Las Vegas MSA. The Valley is largely defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a 600 sq mi (1,600 km2) basin area surrounded by mountains to the north, south, east and west of the metropolitan area. The Valley is home to the three largest incorporated cities in Nevada: Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas. Five unincorporated towns governed by the Clark County government are part of the Las Vegas Township and constitute the largest community in the state of Nevada.

University of Nevada, Reno public research university in Reno, Nevada, United States

The University of Nevada, Reno is a public research university located in Reno, Nevada. Founded on October 12, 1874 in Elko, Nevada is the sole land grant institution for the state of Nevada.

Geography

Western Nevada encompasses the western edge of the state, with the term generally applied to areas within 100 miles (160 km) of the California border, from Mineral County northward. On the west along the California border, the Sierra Nevada mountains rise sharply from the Great Basin desert floor. Basin and Range Province topography extends east from the Sierras, with mountain ranges such as the Virginia Range, Pah Rah Range and Pine Nut Mountains separating the more densely populated Sierra front with the desert plains to the east. The mountains act as a second rain shadow for Pacific storms rolling east.

Sierra Nevada (U.S.) mountain range

The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily in Nevada. The Sierra Nevada is part of the American Cordillera, a chain of mountain ranges that consists of an almost continuous sequence of such ranges that form the western "backbone" of North America, Central America, South America and Antarctica.

Great Basin large depression in western North America

The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America. It spans nearly all of Nevada, much of Oregon and Utah, and portions of California, Idaho, and Wyoming. It is noted for both its arid climate and the basin and range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than 100 miles (160 km) away at the summit of Mount Whitney. The region spans several physiographic divisions, biomes, ecoregions, and deserts.

Basin and Range Province geologic province extending through much of the western United States and Mexico

The Basin and Range Province is a vast physiographic region covering much of the inland Western United States and northwestern Mexico. It is defined by unique basin and range topography, characterized by abrupt changes in elevation, alternating between narrow faulted mountain chains and flat arid valleys or basins. The physiography of the province is the result of tectonic extension that began around 17 million years ago in the early Miocene epoch.

Three rivers flow off the Sierras to the Great Basin — the Truckee River, Carson River and Walker River. The Truckee Canyon through the Virginia and Pah Rah mountains serves as the route for Interstate 80 between Fernley and Reno. Pyramid Lake and Washoe Lake collect water in their respective endorheic basins, and Lake Lahontan impounds the Carson River to distribute water for irrigation in Churchill County.

Truckee River stream in US states of California and Nevada

The Truckee River is a river in the U.S. states of California and Nevada. The river flows northeasterly and is 121 miles (195 km) long. The Truckee is the sole outlet of Lake Tahoe and drains part of the high Sierra Nevada, emptying into Pyramid Lake in the Great Basin. Its waters are an important source of irrigation along its valley and adjacent valleys.

Carson River river in Nevada, USA

The Carson River is a northwestern Nevada river that empties into the Carson Sink, an endorheic basin. The main stem of the river is 131 miles (211 km) long although addition of the East Fork makes the total length 205 miles (330 km), traversing five counties: Alpine County in California and Douglas, Storey, Lyon, and Churchill Counties in Nevada, as well as the Consolidated Municipality of Carson City, Nevada. The river is named for Kit Carson, who guided John C. Frémont's expedition westward up the Carson Valley and across Carson Pass in winter, 1844.

Walker River river in the United States of America

The Walker River is a river in west-central Nevada in the United States, approximately 62 miles (100 km) long. Fed principally by snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, it drains an arid portion of the Great Basin southeast of Reno and flows into the endorheic basin of Walker Lake. The river is an important source of water for irrigation in its course through Nevada; water diversions have reduced its flow such that the level of Walker Lake has fallen 160 feet (49 m) between 1882 and 2010. The river was named for explorer Joseph Reddeford Walker.

Transportation

The main roads in the region are Interstate 80, U.S. Route 50 and U.S. Route 395. US 395 runs from the Los Angeles area to the Pacific Northwest along the eastern Sierras and is a freeway for about 51 of its 85 miles (137 km) through Nevada. Part of US 395 is also I-580. About 35,000 cars daily use I-580 and US 395 between Reno and Carson City.

Interstate 80 (I-80) traverses the northern portion of the U.S. state of Nevada. The freeway serves the Reno–Sparks metropolitan area and passes through the towns of Fernley, Lovelock, Winnemucca, Battle Mountain, Carlin, Elko, Wells and West Wendover on its way through the state.

U.S. Route 50 (US 50) is a transcontinental highway in the United States, stretching from West Sacramento, California, in the west to Ocean City, Maryland, on the east coast. The Nevada portion crosses the center of the state and was named The Loneliest Road in America by Life magazine in July 1986. The name was intended as a pejorative, but Nevada officials seized it as a marketing slogan. The name originates from large desolate areas traversed by the route, with few or no signs of civilization. The highway crosses several large desert valleys separated by numerous mountain ranges towering over the valley floors, in what is known as the Basin and Range province of the Great Basin.

U.S. Route 395 in Nevada highway in Nevada

U.S. Route 395 (US 395) is an 85-mile-long (137 km) United States Numbered Highway near Lake Tahoe in the state of Nevada. It traverses the state after entering from California at Topaz Lake and crosses back into California near Hallelujah Junction. US 395 serves the cities of Gardnerville, Minden, Carson City and Reno. All of US 395 north of Carson City is a freeway and is built up to Interstate Highway standards. Part of the freeway section is also designated as Interstate 580 (I-580).

I-80 is the main east-west route through the region, connecting with Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay Area to the west and the Great Basin and Salt Lake City to the east. It also connects the rapidly growing community of Fernley with Reno and serves as a route to access the resort communities at Lake Tahoe.

Sacramento, California State capital and city of California, United States

Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's estimated 2018 population of 501,334 makes it the sixth-largest city in California and the ninth largest capital in the United States. Sacramento is the seat of the California Legislature and the Governor of California, making it the state's political center and a hub for lobbying and think tanks. Sacramento is also the cultural and economic core of the Sacramento metropolitan area, which had a 2010 population of 2,414,783, making it the fifth largest in California.

San Francisco Bay Area Conurbation in California, United States

The San Francisco Bay Area is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun Bay estuaries in the northern part of the U.S. state of California. Although the exact boundaries of the region vary depending on the source, the Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Governments to include the nine counties that border the aforementioned estuaries: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, Sonoma, and San Francisco. Other sources may exclude parts of or even entire counties, or expand the definition to include neighboring counties that don't border the bay such as San Benito, San Joaquin, and Santa Cruz.

Salt Lake City State capital city in Utah, United States

Salt Lake City is the capital and most populous municipality of the U.S. state of Utah, and county seat of Salt Lake County. With an estimated population of 190,884 in 2014, the city is the core of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a population of 1,153,340. Salt Lake City is further situated within a larger metropolis known as the Salt Lake City–Ogden–Provo Combined Statistical Area, a corridor of contiguous urban and suburban development stretched along a 120-mile (190 km) segment of the Wasatch Front, comprising a population of 2,423,912. It is one of only two major urban areas in the Great Basin.

US 50 also connects to Sacramento to the west, running along Lake Tahoe before descending to Carson City. To the east, it connects Dayton, Silver Springs and Fallon to the state capital.

Counties

Western Nevada generally includes the following counties:

Cities and towns

See also

Related Research Articles

Washoe County, Nevada County in the United States

Washoe County is a county in the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2010 census, the population was 421,407, making it Nevada's second-most populous county. Its county seat is Reno.

Lake Tahoe lake in California and Nevada, United States

Lake Tahoe is a large freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at 6,225 ft (1,897 m), it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in North America, and at 122,160,280 acre⋅ft (150.7 km3) trails only the five Great Lakes as the largest by volume in the United States. Its depth is 1,645 ft (501 m), making it the second deepest in the United States after Crater Lake in Oregon.

Carson Range mountain range

The Carson Range is a spur of the Sierra Nevada in eastern California and western Nevada that starts at Carson Pass and stretches north to the Truckee River near Verdi, Nevada.

Pyramid Lake (Nevada) lake in Nevada, United States

Pyramid Lake is the geographic sink of the basin of the Truckee River, 40 mi (64 km) northeast of Reno, Nevada, United States.

Washoe people indigenous peoples

The Washoe or Wašišiw are a Great Basin tribe of Native Americans, living near Lake Tahoe at the border between California and Nevada. The name "Washoe" or "Washo" is derived from the autonym Waashiw in the Washo language or from Wašišiw (waší:šiw), the plural form of wašiw.

Pah Rah Range Mountain range in Nevada

The Pah Rah Range is a mountain range located in western Nevada in Washoe County just to the northeast of Reno. It is a hook shaped range with the main eastern portion oriented northwest-southeast, approximately 20 miles (32 km) long. The northwest flowing Cottonwood Creek in Warm Springs Valley is bounded on three sides by the range. To the south and east the Truckee River forms the boundary and Pyramid Lake is at the northeast. Spanish Springs Valley north of Reno forms the southwest margin. To the north the narrow Mullen Pass separates the Pah Rah Range from the Virginia Mountains.

Truckee Range

The Truckee Range is a mountain range located in western Nevada in the United States. The border between Washoe County and Churchill County runs along the ridge. The ridge runs north-south for approximately 30 miles.

State Route 341 is a state highway in western Nevada connecting US 50 near Dayton to Reno via Virginia City. Commonly known as the Virginia City Highway, or Geiger Grade north of Virginia City, the route has origins dating back to the 1860s.

The Northern Nevada 4A Region is a part of the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association, governing the northern half of Nevada for high school athletics. The Northern 4A league is the large-school level, which has schools with enrollments of 1,200 and higher. The region is split into two leagues. The High Desert League and the Sierra League. Both leagues are divided by proximity with the High Desert encompassing the schools north of Mill Street in Reno, while the schools in the Sierra League are south of Mill Street.

Nevada State Route 431 highway in Nevada

State Route 431, commonly known as the Mount Rose Highway, is a 24.4-mile (39.3 km) two-lane highway in Washoe County, Nevada, that connects Incline Village at Lake Tahoe with Reno. The highway, a Nevada Scenic Byway, takes its name from Mount Rose, which lies just off the highway. Prior to 1976, the highway existed as State Route 27.

U.S. Route 395 in California highway in California

In the U.S. state of California, U.S. Route 395 (US 395) is a 557-mile (896 km) route which traverses from Interstate 15 in Hesperia, north to the Oregon state line in Modoc County near Goose Lake. The route clips into Nevada, serving the cities Carson City and Reno, before returning to California.

Mount Rose (Nevada) mountain in United States of America

Mount Rose is the highest mountain in Washoe County, within the Carson Range of Nevada, United States. It ranks thirty-seventh among the most topographically prominent peaks in the state. It is also both the highest and most topographically prominent peak of the greater Sierra Nevada range within the state of Nevada, and the third most topographically prominent peak in the Sierra Nevada overall. It is located in the Mount Rose Wilderness of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. An extinct volcano, the mountain is in between Lake Tahoe and Reno. State Route 431 traverses Mount Rose Summit southeast of Mount Rose. Due to the high elevation, most of the precipitation that falls on the mountain is snow. The view from Mount Rose, facing east is the Truckee Meadows area is the second largest population center in Nevada.

Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District

The Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District of Washoe County Nevada covers the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Western Nevada. The county spans an area of nearly 6,600 square miles in the northwest section of the state bordering California and Oregon. The Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District previously partnered with the City of Reno and operated a fire apparatus fleet of 11 engines, 11 brush trucks, 1 rescue squad, 1 ambulance, 1 hazardous material unit, various support units, 2 technical rescue support units, 8 water tenders, and 2 water rescue entry vehicles The District's primary areas of responsibility include rural and suburban communities outside the City of Reno. Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District responded to 10,581 calls for service with a 2017/2018 budget of $27,932,275.

References

  1. ↑ Welcome to Greater Reno-Tahoe

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