Using Maps

THE CHANGES IN THE LANDSCAPE
If you have the opportunity to travel on today’s I-94 across North Dakota you can see many interesting things if you keep your eyes open. It also helps to let your imagination wander helping you to experience events and sites from North Dakota’s early history.

Before the white man arrived, this area was covered with tall prairie grass and huge buffalo roamed freely on the land. Indian villages were found scattered across the prairie and many of the trails they used were later incorporated into the Red Line Trail, which now parallels I-94.

As you go from east to west the amount of rainfall is also less. Because of the difference in topography (land features) and rainfall amounts, you will also notice a difference in the types of agriculture and even wildlife.

The first area you encounter, as you travel from east to west, is the Red River Valley which once was part of a lake bottom called Lake Agassiz and consequently is very flat. You will then come to the Pembina Escarpment which is made up of moderate hills formed from the deposit of glacier debris. The next area is the Glaciated Plains which has gentle rolling hills. The Plains end at the Missouri Escarpment, a steep boundary to more noticeable hills called the Missouri Coteau. All five of these geologic features make up what are called the Central Lowlands. The western part of the state is called the Great Plains and is made up of three geologic features. The first, rolling to hilly plains, is called the Coteau Slope and lies east of the Missouri River. The second, Missouri Slope Upland, are more notable hilly plains that lie west of the Missouri River. The third, and final feature, is most pronounced with its rugged deeply eroded hills and is called the Little Missouri Badlands.

Student Activity Sheet
Image: Geography worksheet.pdf