Задание по ин.язу (английский)
Empty Desert
In the nineteenth century Americans from the eastern U.S. moved out west to the rich new lands of the Pacific Coast. The most difficult part of their trip was crossing the “Great Americans Desert” of the western United States by horse and wagon.
The western deserts can be very dangerous. There is little water and there are few trees. But the desert also has scenery of great beauty. Monuments Valley covers parts of four U.S. states: Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico. Tall towers of red and yellow stone rise sharply from the flat, sandy valley floor. The scene has been photographed many times in movies, and for TV commercials for everything from cars to computers. In Arizona, manmade dams across the Colorado River have made two large lakes in the middle of the dry desert country. At Lake Powell, the red stone arch of Rainbow Bridge rises high above the blue lake. There are few roads. Many areas of Lake Powell’s shore can only be reached by boat or on foot. But hikers in this empty desert land sometimes find very old Native Americans pictures, or petroglyphs, painted on the rocks.
In Death Valley, California, the summer temperature rises to 130 – 165 degrees Fahrenheit. There is less than two inches of rain each year. Death Valley is the lowest place in the Americans – 282 feet below sea level. In the 1800s, many travelers died when they tried to cross this waterless valley in the terrible heat. Today it is a popular winter resort, with campgrounds, a luxury hotel, and a golf course. But hotels and campgrounds in Death Valley still have to close during the hot summer.
Although the desert is dry and seems empty, there is plenty of life if you look closely. Small insects, snakes, and rats have learned how to live in the desert heat. They live underground and come out at night, when it is cool. Plants such as cacti need very little water. When it does rain in the desert (sometimes only once or twice a year), plants grow quickly, and flowers open in a single day. For a short time, the desert is covered with brilliant colour.
Modern visitors to America’s deserts don’t have the same problems as early travelers did. They have air conditioning and can carry plenty of water in their cars. They enjoy the change from the crowded city. And there is nothing more beautiful than the colours of a desert sunset.
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