Today, we’re going west: the mountains and the desert
Lesson summary
Hi there everyone, I’m Jeff and this is Plain English, where we help you upgrade your English with stories about the world. And today, we’re talking about a really beautiful part of the world: the western United States. We’ve talked about what it’s like to live in four regions of the country: the east coast, the west coast, the Midwest and the South.
Today, we’ll talk about the west. These are all the big, western states that are not on the west coast. Let’s call the southwest the states of New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada. The mountain west would be Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and Utah.
In the second half of the lesson, I’ll show you what it means to “take cover.”
This is lesson number 696, so you can find the full lesson at PlainEnglish.com/696. That includes the transcript, translations, exercises, practice area, fast and slow audio, and much more. PlainEnglish.com/696.
America’s west: mountains, plains, and desert
Let’s start up north , in the mountain west . If there’s one thing that characterizes this region, it’s the Rocky Mountains, the biggest mountain range in North America. The largest peaks are in the state of Colorado—fifty-eight mountains have peaks over 14,000 feet, or about 4,300 meters, and that’s just in one state .
These mountains—in Colorado, but also in nearby states of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho—these mountains are beautiful, and they’re very well preserved by both national and state governments. National parks, national forests , and other conservation areas limit development , protect the natural landscape , and provide recreation opportunities for locals and tourists.
You may have heard of Yellowstone National Park , Rocky Mountain National Park, Glacier National Park, and Grand Teton National Park—these are just four of the big, national parks in the area.
In the mountains, you can hike , camp , fish , hunt , bike , snowmobile , kayak , canoe , ski, and more. Some areas are accessible for casual hikers and day-trippers . Other areas are very remote . If you want to pack a water purifier , some freeze-dried food , and not see another human soul for a week or a month—you can do that out here.
The nation’s best downhill skiing is in this region. And as you might expect, a lot of snow falls in the mountains. The skiing is world-class . But make sure you’re driving a four-wheel drive vehicle . The roads can be treacherous when snow falls—and snow can fall almost any time of the year.
There are a few cities in the region. Denver, Colorado, is called the “mile-high” city for its elevation , about one mile above sea level. Denver is a great medium-sided city; it’s considered the “capital of the west,” so it’s where the region does its business. U.S. Olympic athletes train near Denver.
Two smaller cities in the mountain west: Salt Lake City, Utah, and Boise, Idaho. Salt Lake City is known as the home of the Mormon Church .
A lot of very wealthy people have second homes in resort towns in the mountain west. The most famous resort town is Aspen, Colorado. It’s full of boutiques and high-end restaurants that cater to its wealthy part-time residents.
The west has oil and mineral deposits , too. Many towns in the area were settled when precious metals like silver were discovered beneath the ground . Coal , oil, gas , and other minerals critical for consumer products are mined in Wyoming and the western states.
Outside the mountains, though, this region is very flat . Eastern Colorado, eastern Montana, eastern Wyoming are flat and empty . A lot of the land is used for cattle grazing . A lot of it is used for nothing at all.
This west has the lowest population density of any part of the United States, except Alaska. There are long, long distances in between small, small towns.
Now let’s go to the southwest, the states of Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico. This is the desert . Winters can be cool, but summers are scorching hot . From May to September, it’s common for high temperatures to hit 38, 40, 42 degrees, or more.
Only the hardiest plants grow in the desert: you see a lot of cactus and sagebrush in this region. While people take cover inside during the summer months, there are still great things to do outdoors during the rest of the year. The Grand Canyon is in Arizona. The city of Sedona is a resort town with excellent hiking among its red rock formations .
The biggest cities in the region are Phoenix and Tucson in Arizona; Albuquerque in New Mexico; and of course Las Vegas in Nevada.
Las Vegas is called “ Sin City .” The name dates back to the early Twentieth Century, when gambling and prostitution were legal in the state of Nevada, while they had been outlawed elsewhere. The laws have evolved (prostitution is no longer legal; other places have legalized gambling).
But the name stuck . Las Vegas is now an entertainment destination —yes, for its casinos, but also for its live entertainment , concerts, shows, and excellent restaurants. Las Vegas is also a top destination for meetings and conventions .
Phoenix is the tenth-largest metro area in the country and it’s growing quickly. Phoenix is a relatively young city. Its population really started to boom in the 1960s, when air conditioning was standard in new homes. For that reason, the area is associated with homebuilding and rapid expansion . It’s a car-centric city —few people live in tall apartment buildings. So the commutes can be long and there’s no public transportation.
There are good hiking and mountain biking trails close to the city—locals like to get out for early-morning hikes and bike rides before the sun comes out in force. Southwestern cities have great food, too. You can get a little of everything. But the region’s cuisine is influenced by the foods of Spanish settlers , Native Americans , and Mexicans. Pork , beef , beans , corn, and New Mexico green chile peppers are common ingredients in local foods.
If you want to live in the southwest, you’re going to want to be in one of the cities or their suburbs . There aren’t a lot of small towns, medium sized cities, in between—the climate is too punishing and there’s just not much between the large cities.
But don’t expect a lot of land. Because it’s the desert, new homes are built very close together, on small lots. You might have a swimming pool in your backyard , but don’t expect leafy trees or a green grass lawn . Most homes have rocks, cactus , and other desert landscape that doesn’t require much water. Las Vegas gets just 10 centimeters of rain per year.
Jeff’s take
The mountain west. It’s hard to describe. Outside the mountains—in the plains , the rolling hills —these are some very remote areas. The Midwest has some wide-open spaces, too, but in the Midwest, there are farms . So you drive around and you see farms—farm houses, barns, tractors , farm equipment , small towns. In the mountain west, you drive and you see nothing.
Like literally nothing on the land. No animals, no trees, no people, no machines, no fences . Just wide open land . And you can drive for hours, pass a handful of cars, and maybe a gas station or a small town or two—that’s it.
But then the mountains are stunning . I drove out west during the pandemic, I visited Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. And they were great. But simply the drive to get there—not in a national park, not in a park of any kind—just driving there was some of the most beautiful landscape I’d ever seen. I’d pull over , get out of the car, and just marvel at what I was looking at.
It really is amazing and I recommend it if you can see it. It’s not easy to get to these places. You can’t take a bus. Uber won’t take you from Denver to Yellowstone—that’s like a nine-hour drive. You need your own transportation . But if you can get there, if that’s an option, don’t miss it.
Great stories make learning English fun
