Welcome to AltaColumbia - a Cascadia concepts site
Cascadia is the northwest coastal region of North America, including the area surrounding the Cascade mountain range extending from northern California to the Alaskan panhandle, and covers much of Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, Canada. It is the region formed by the interaction of the North Pacific Ocean and North American Continent both in terms of climate and the geological results of plate tectonics.
Scottish explorer David Douglas named the Cascades for the great waterfalls made by the Columbia River as it roars through the Columbia Gorge. The Cascades later became the name for the mountain range that makes the north-coastal rainforest possible as it precipitates the warm Pacific moisture-laden air as rain and snow. When the drainage basins of this area are included, Cascadia extends eastward beyond the Cascade range to the headwaters of the rivers that flow through it from the western slopes of the Rocky Mountains.
Cascadia includes the northcoast watersheds from the Redwood forests in Northern California to the Sitka spruce valleys of the Alaska panhandle and is the home of the massive fir trees that are named after David Douglas. Because of the domination of the Columbia River watershed on the north coast landscape, the name "Columbiana" is also used for describing the vast drainage basin of Columbia, Snake and Kootenay rivers.
A narrower definition of Cascadia refers to the area influenced by the Cascade mountain range and the 100 miles of coastal lands between it and the Pacific Ocean. "Cascadia" has lately become the term for the Can-Am border regional identity that has resulted in attempts primarily in Washington, Oregon and British Columbia to work cooperatively to promote their manifest destiny. Cascadia is also a Pac-Rim nation-state concept and is becoming the basis for regional autonomy. For many residents of the Pacific Northwest, Cascadia is a state of mind fostered by the lifestyle of this unique biosphere and has become a geographical identity spoken of with pride.
As you click through AltaColumbia, you can visit many of the interesting and informative web sites dedicated to various aspects of Cascadia. Use the navigator bar at the top of each page to find out more about Cascadia and to explore its history, geography, people, culture and plans for the future.
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
A visit to the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is like taking a journey into ancient Oregon. Whether you tour the museum at Sheep Rock, hike a trail at the Painted Hills, or picnic at Clarno, Oregon's exciting past will be revealed. http://www.nps.gov/joda/
Virtual Cascades - Worlds Largest Collection of Live Mountain Webcam Links !
Experience a virtual mountain adventure among the Pacific Northwest Cascades where a spine of glaciated volcanic summits crowns the western regions of Oregon, Washington, northern California and Canada. http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/2483/
Sightline Institute: Maps & Graphics
Sightline Institute has a wide variety of maps, charts, tables, and Flash animations available for use -- in many versions --on trends ranging from 100 years of growth in Oregon to energy use around the Northwest. http://www.sightline.org/maps
Cascadia - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Supporters of the Evergreen Revolution, hope to one day achieve the independence of Cascadia through peaceful means versus the use of violent revolution, much the same way as was done in the former Czecho-Slovakia's Velvet Revolution in 1989. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cascadia
Cultural Cascades - 5 Cities + 2 Countries = ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES
Aboard the Amtrak Cascades route, the cities of Vancouver, B.C.; Seattle; Tacoma; Portland; and Eugene form the Cultural Cascades – a great place to experience the best in art, culture and cuisine. http://www.culturalcascades.com/
The mission of the Cascadia Center is to support the development of a balanced, integrated, and expanded transportation system for people and goods in central Puget Sound and the greater Cascadia region of Washington, British Columbia, and Oregon. http://www.discovery.org/cascadia/
TIDEPOOL is updated every weekday by nine a.m. with the best news stories collected from more than three dozen on-line news sources. http://www.tidepool.org/
Cascadia is the northwest coastal region of North America, including the area surrounding the Cascade mountain range extending from northern California to the Alaskan panhandle, and covers much of Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, Canada. It is the region formed by the interaction of the North Pacific Ocean and North American Continent both in terms of climate and the geological results of plate tectonics. 
Supporters of the Evergreen Revolution, hope to one day achieve the independence of Cascadia through peaceful means versus the use of violent revolution, much the same way as was done in the former Czecho-Slovakia's Velvet Revolution in 1989.
