Friday 11 September 2015

New York State Land Features

The New York City harbor is one of many, varied land features in the state.


The geography of New York State is diverse, from the New York City harbor and the Hudson river in the east to the Great Lakes (Erie and Ontario) in the West. The land masses of New York State include the Adirondack Mountains and the Appalachian Highlands, separated and flanked by valleys and plains. All of the land features of New York help define the state's regions.


Northern New York


The most prominent land feature of northern New York is the Adirondack Mountains. The Adirondacks have the highest elevation in New York State and are quite rugged. They make up a large circular center of the Adirondack region of the state. To the northwest of the mountains is the thin St. Lawrence lowlands--along the coast of Lake Ontario--and the Champlain lowlands and lake Champlain border the mountains to the northeast. Along the bank of Ontario lake, just southwest of the mountains across the Black River Valley, is the Tug Hill Plateau. The Tug Hill Plateau is famous for its heavy snowfall.


Western New York


Western New York State is divided into two major land features, the slender Erie-Ontario Lowlands--which border the two great lakes--in the north and the Allegheny Plateau to the south. On the eastern end of the the Allegheny Plateau are the famous Finger Lakes, which are home to robust wine growing and is popular among outdoor vacationers. The Finger Lakes region is speckled with waterfalls and rolling green hills. On the other end of the plateau, where it meets the Erie-Ontario lowlands in the North, is Niagara Falls--one of the most famous waterfalls in the world.


Eastern New York


New York State's eastern regions are characterized by a series of smaller land features. The Catskills Mountain Range begins where western New York State's Allegheny Plateau ends. This mountain range runs just west of the Hudson river and is much smaller than the Adirondacks in the north. The 10- to 30-mile wide Hudson-Mohawk Lowlands follow the Hudson River north and west and are bordered to the east by the Taconic Mountains, which run the Atlantic Coast. In the southern corner of New York State, in the Hudson Valley, are the Hudson Highlands and the Newark Lowlands. The Atlantic Coastal Plain--the most southeastern feature of the state--makes up all of Long Island.

Tags: York State, land features, Allegheny Plateau, Adirondack Mountains, City harbor