British Columbia

 British  Columbia is the third  largest Canadian province,  both in  area

 and  population. It is nearly 1.5  times as       large as Texas, and  extends

 800 miles (1,280km) north  from the United States border. It includes

Canada's entire    west coast and the islands just off the coast.

 Most of British Columbia is mountainous, with long rugged ranges running

 north and south. Even the coastal islands are the remains of a mountain

 range that existed thousands of years ago. During the last Ice Age, this

 range was   scoured by glaciers until most of it was beneath the sea. Its

 peaks now show as islands scattered along the coast.

 The southwestern  coastal region has a  humid  mild marine climate. Sea

 winds that  blow inland from the west are       warmed by a current  of warm

 water that flows through the Pacific Ocean. As a result, winter

 temperatures average    above freezing and summers are mild. These warm

 western winds also carry moisture from the ocean.

 Inland from the coast, the winds from the Pacific meet the mountain

 barriers of the coastal ranges and the Rocky      Mountains. As they rise to

 cross the mountains, the winds are cooled, and their moisture begins to

 fall as rain. On some of the western slopes almost 200 inches (500cm) of

rain fall each year.

 More than half of British  Columbia is heavily forested. On mountain slopes

 that receive plentiful rainfall, huge   Douglas firs rise in towering

 columns. These forest giants often grow to be as much as 300 feet (90m)

 tall, with     diameters up to 10 feet (3m). More lumber is produced from these

 trees than from any other kind of tree in North  America. Hemlock, red

 cedar, and balsam fir are among the other trees found in British Columbia.

英屬哥倫比亞

 英屬哥倫比亞是加拿大的第三大省，無論是面積還是人口都是如此。  它幾乎是德克薩 斯的 1.5 倍，從美國邊境一直向北延伸了 800 英里(1，280

 公里)。  它包括了加拿大整個西 海岸及附近島嶼。  大部分英屬哥倫比亞多山巒。  綿長而粗獷的山脈貫通南北。  甚至那些

 沿海的島嶼都是那些存在于千萬年前的山脈的遺跡。  在上一個冰河時期，這些山脈被冰河 沖刷侵蝕，直到大部分山脈被淹沒在海中。

 它們的峰頂顯現為沿著海岸散布的島嶼。 西南 海岸地區有著潮濕溫和的海洋性氣候。  從太平洋來的溫暖的洋流使得從西吹過內陸的海風 變得溫暖。

因此這兒冬天平均氣溫在零上而且夏天也不會酷熱。 這些溫暖的西風同樣也從 海洋帶來了濕氣。

 來自太平洋的、從海岸向內陸的風遇到海岸山脈和落基山脈這些山脈屏 障。  當氣流升高跨越這些山脈時，風的溫度就降低了，風中的水分形成降雨。  在一些朝西

 山坡區域每年大約有 200 英寸(500 厘米)的降水。  大部分英屬哥倫比亞密布著森林。  在有 充足降水的斜坡，巨大的道格拉斯樅樹高聳入云。

 這些森林巨人常常長到高達 300 英尺(90 米)，直徑粗達 10 英尺(3 米)。  這些樹產出了比北美其他任何樹都多的木材。  鐵杉、紅香

椿、香脂冷杉樅都是發現于英屬哥倫比亞的其它樹種。

譯路通武漢翻譯公司整理

2012.6.13