This region is on the east side of the Blue Mountains
Statistics (for La Grande):
Average high temperature in August: 85.
Average low temperature in January: 23.1.
Average snowfall in January: 6.7”.
Growing season: 160 days.
Advantages: Proximity to good hunting and firewood sources in “The Blues.” More plentiful water than in many other parts of eastern Oregon. Fairly diverse agriculture. Grande Ronde Valley crops are primarily wheat, hay, and barley, with some oats, apples, cherries, sugar beets, and beans.
From the Oregon Blue Book: “The Grande Ronde Valley in Union County is nearly table flat and is covered with the rich silt of an old lake bed. Highly diversified, with an annual rainfall of twenty inches, the valley boasts of never having had a general crop failure. The county’s 1,092 farms average 473 acres a unit.”
Disadvantages: A major interstate freeway (I-84) passes through the region, so look for places that are away from the freeway. Downwind from Seattle if the winds are atypical.
Grid Up Retreat Potential: 2 (On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best)
Grid Down Retreat Potential: 6 (On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best)
Nuclear Scenario Retreat Potential: 4 (On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the best)