© Pete Saloutos/Panoramic Images (Washington Title Image Large)
Canadian Rocky Mountains ecoregion
Some of Washington’s wildest country is found in its far northeastern corner. Large mammals such as moose and the endangered mountain caribou live in the deep boreal forests.
Location
The western edge of the Rocky Mountains form this ecoregion in Washington's northeastern corner. Made up primarily of the Selkirk Mountains, it encompasses 4% of the state.
Beyond Washington’s borders, the Canadian Rocky Mountains ecoregion stretches east into Idaho and Montana, and a long way north into British Columbia and Alberta.
In Washington, the ecoregion is bounded by the Okanogan ecoregion on the west and touches the Columbia Plateau ecoregion on its southwestern edge.
The ecoregion is sparsely populated, though Highways 20 and 31 run north-south along the Pend Oreille River, connecting towns like Newport, Ione, and Metaline Falls.
For details of this ecoregion within Washington, click a subheading in the left column.
A more general description of this ecoregion in North America is not yet available.
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