Idaho

The State of Idaho is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans." Idaho was admitted to the Union on 3 July 1890 as the 43rd state.

According to the United States Census Bureau, in 2007 the population for Idaho was 1,499,402. The state's postal abbreviation is ID. Idaho's nickname is the Gem State because of its abundance of natural resources. The state motto is Esto Perpetua (Latin for "Let it be forever").

Idaho borders six states and one Canadian province. The states of Washington and Oregon are to the west, Nevada and Utah are to the south, and Montana and Wyoming are to the east. Idaho also shares a short (48 miles (77 km)) border with Canada: the province of British Columbia is to the north. The landscape is rugged with some of the largest unspoiled natural areas in the United States. It is a Rocky Mountain state with abundant natural resources and scenic areas. The state has snow-capped mountain ranges, rapids, vast lakes and steep canyons. The waters of Snake River rush through Hells Canyon, the deepest canyon in the United States. Shoshone Falls plunges down rugged cliffs from a height greater than that of Niagara Falls. The major rivers in Idaho are the Snake River, the Clark Fork/Pend Oreille River, the Clearwater River and the Salmon River. Other significant rivers include the Coeur d'Alene/Spokane River, the Boise River and the Payette River. The Port of Lewiston, at the confluence of the Clearwater and the Snake Rivers is the farthest inland seaport in the Pacific Northwest.

Idaho's highest point is Borah Peak, 12,662 ft (3,859 m), in the Lost River Range north of Mackay. Idaho's lowest point, 745 ft (227 m), is in Lewiston, where the Clearwater River joins the Snake River and continues into Washington.

Southern Idaho, including the Boise metropolitan area, Idaho Falls, Pocatello, and Twin Falls are in the Mountain Time Zone. (A legislative oddity (15 U.S.C. ch.6 § 264) theoretically places this region in the Pacific Time Zone, but this error is not widely known and is universally ignored.) Areas north of the Salmon River, including Coeur d'Alene, Moscow, Lewiston, and Sandpoint are in the Pacific Time Zone and revolve commercially and culturally around Spokane, Washington

Climate

Idaho has much variation in its climate. Although the state's western border is located 300 miles (480 km) from the Pacific Ocean,[citation needed] the maritime influence is still felt in Idaho, especially in the winter when cloud cover, humidity, and precipitation are at their highest points. This influence has a moderating effect in the winter where temperatures are not as low as would otherwise be expected for a northern state with a mostly elevated altitude. The maritime influence is lowest in the southeastern part of the state where the precipitation patterns are often reversed, with wetter summers and drier winters, and seasonal temperature differences more extreme, showing a more continental climate.

Climate in Idaho can be hot, although extended periods over 100 °F (38 °C) for the maximum temperature are rare. Hot summer days are tempered by the low relative humidity and cooler evenings during summer months since, for most of the state, the highest diurnal difference in temperature is often in the summer. Winters can be cold, although extended periods of bitter cold weather below zero are unusual.