Big Valley is a constituent region of the state of West Elizabeth in Red Dead Redemption 2 and Red Dead Online.
The main settlement of the region is Strawberry.
Description[]
The northernmost region of West Elizabeth, Big Valley is separated from Great Plains and Tall Trees by the Upper Montana River. It flows from the Owanjila Dam in the western part of Big Valley, southwards, past Tall Trees, before flowing to the east, forming the border between Great Plains and Big Valley. Hawks Eye Creek empties into the river, which then empties into Flat Iron Lake just north of Blackwater. Big Valley is also bordered by the Grizzlies West in the north and The Heartlands in the east.
Big Valley is a mountainous region covered in forests. The town of Strawberry is found within Big Valley, and serves as the "capital" of the territory. The climate of Big Valley is moderately cold, with the temperature typically being under 15 °C (59 °F) at day and sometimes below 0 °C (32 °F) during the night.
The Big Valley region seems to bear a resemblance to a number of forested areas in the Pacific Northwest United States. Big Valley's major inspiration is the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California, while also sharing many similarities of Yosemite. The blue wildflowers, which are common in Big Valley, are almost identical to the gray lupine, a wildflower most commonly found in Yosemite. The town of Strawberry might be inspired around the real-life Strawberry, California, Strawberry and the surrounding area is based on Babcock State Park in West Virginia. Considering its close proximity to The Heartlands and Great Plains. It is more likely that Big Valley represents parts of Colorado as the Little Creek River area is similar to the Big Thompson River in the Rocky National Park, and possibly Merced River in Yosemite National Park in California. The Mount Shann appears to be based off of Mount Shasta in California while the overall scenery in Big Valley is reminiscent of the Wasatch–Cache National Forest.
Locations in Big Valley[]
- Appleseed Timber Company
- Bard's Crossing
- Beryl's Dream
- Black Bone Forest
- Dakota River
- Diablo Ridge
- Fort Riggs
- Hanging Dog Ranch
- Hawks Eye Creek
- Lenora View
- Little Creek River
- Lone Mule Stead
- Monto's Rest
- Mount Shann
- Old Tom's Blind
- Owanjila
- Owanjila Dam
- Painted Sky
- Pronghorn Ranch
- Riggs Station
- Shepherds Rise
- Stilt Shack
- Strawberry
- Taxidermist House
- Upper Montana River
- Valley View
- Vetter's Echo
- Wallace Overlook
- Wallace Station
- Watson's Cabin
Native Plants[]
Wildlife[]
- Badger
- Beaver
- Black Bear
- Blue Jay
- Buck
- Bull
- Cardinal
- Chicken
- Chipmunk
- Cormorant
- Cougar
- Cow
- Coyote
- Crow
- Deer
- Duck
- Eagle
- Elk
- Fox
- Grizzly
- Goose
- Gull
- Hawk
- Loon
- Muskrat
- Opossum
- Oriole
- Owl
- Oxen
- Pronghorn
- Quail
- Rabbit
- Raccoon
- Ram
- Rat
- Robin
- Sheep
- Skunk
- Snake
- Songbird
- Sparrow
- Squirrel
- Toad
- Turkey
- Vulture
- Waxwing
- Wolf
- Woodpecker
- Legendary Buck
Trivia[]
- The name of Big Valley was originally going to be "Great Valley", but the name was already taken; the 1988 film The Land Before Time had the Great Valley named as the most prominent location in the aforementioned original film and its subsequent thirteen direct-to-video sequels, the latest of which released in 2016, during Red Dead Redemption 2s development.
- The name "Big Valley" is in line with the names of the two other regions of West Elizabeth (Tall Trees and Great Plains) where the names are preceded by an adjective describing the location.
- The term "Big Valley" is often associated with various locations in California. There are at least two unincorporated communities in the state that go by the name “Big Valley.” The state also features the Big Valley Mountains, and the Big Valley Band of Pomo Indians of the Big Valley Rancheria is a federally-recognized tribe of Native Americans with a reservation in Lake County, California.
- It must be said that naming conventions are circumstantial evidence when compared to geographical locations, the presence of Mount Shann (Mount Elbert in the Colorado Front Range and the tallest mountain United States Rockies), and the confirmed in game presence of California by Sam Odessa in Red Dead Redemption.
- The native range of Moose has never extended to northern California yet are found around Lake Owanjila and the western side of the Dakota River. This also disproves the theory that Big Valley is representative of northern California as native moose ranges in real life include substantial part of the Rocky Mountains.
- Other geographical evidence to support Big Valley being based on the Rockies include being east of both Cholla Springs and Gaptooth Ridge (Arizona and New Mexico) south of The Grizzlies (Rocky Mountains), sharing borders with The Heartlands and Ambarino (high plains states and Rocky Mountain states), and the close proximity of the Dakota River (Missouri River).
- The Big Valley was a Western television series that ran from 1965 to 1969. One of the show's main protagonists, Heath Barkley, was played by Lee Majors, who also played the voice of Mitch Baker in Rockstar Games's Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. The Big Valley television series itself was based on the Hill Ranch in California’s Calaveras County, whose county seat is San Andreas.
- Big Valley can only be seen from a distance in Red Dead Redemption and is uncrossable due to the Upper Montana River's current being rougher and the Owanjila Dam either being opened or damaged by unknown causes.
- The area is technically visitable in the first game, as the multiplayer-exclusive Outfitter is located in it. In normal circumstances the player can only browse character models there, but teleporting to a player using the outfitter can be used to explore the area. The game identifies the area as part of Great Plains, as Big Valley hadn't been conceived as a location yet.
Gallery[]
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