62 



WESTERN GRAZING GROUNDS AND FOREST RANGES 



ming. The deserts of Nevada, Utah, some parts of Cali- 

 fornia and in fact all of those states lying within the 

 great intermountain region of the Rockies and east of the 

 crest of the Sierras, have very much the same general 

 characteristics, so that a brief description of the Red Des- 

 ert will cover them all. There are, however, many vari- 

 eties of forage plants and browses which are not found 



Semi-Desert Sage Range in Wyoming. 



generally elsewhere and are peculiar to the Red Desert 

 region. 



The Red Desert lies generally at an elevation of 7,000 

 feet and consists of a high, undulating plain, broken 

 more or less by low ranges of hills, with very little sur- 

 face water and still less beneath the surface. The stock 

 which uses this range depends almost entirely upon the 

 winter snows for water, and therefore the region is most 

 valuable as a winter range. 



While there are some herds of cattle on this range, 

 it is the ideal winter resort for the sheepman, and it is 



