Wanderlust World Wanderlust World Among America's vernacular regions, two stand out for being explicitly named after the physical geography that defines the member states:
Defining feature: Vast, flat-to-rolling grasslands (shortgrass/mixed-grass prairie) stretching from the 98th meridian west to the Rockies' foothills. States (all or part): Colorado (eastern), Kansas, Montana (eastern), Nebraska, New Mexico (eastern), North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas (panhandle/north), Wyoming (eastern). Unity: Climate (semi-arid, continental), agriculture (wheat, cattle), aquifer (Ogallala), wind energy, depopulation challenges.
Defining feature: The Rocky Mountain cordillera — north-south chain of high peaks, alpine valleys, continental divide. States (all or part): Colorado (core), Idaho (central/north), Montana (western), Nevada (small northeast), New Mexico (north), Utah (eastern), Wyoming (core). Unity: Orographic climate, mineral wealth (gold, silver, molybdenum), tourism (ski, parks), water towers (Colorado, Columbia, Missouri, Rio Grande headwaters), federal land dominance.
Most U.S. regions are named for: history (New England, Deep South), culture (Appalachia, Ozarks), politics (Bible Belt, Rust Belt), economy (Corn Belt, Sun Belt), or colonial legacy (Mid-Atlantic). Only the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains derive their primary identity directly from a shared physiographic province that visibly, structurally shapes every included state.
Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Wyoming belong to both — the Plains/Rockies transition (Front Range, High Plains) is a distinct ecotone. This dual membership reflects the continent's fundamental structural grain.