Can these climates/biomes exist near each other?
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I am writing a story, in which I would like to have three locations within about a half hour to an hour driving distance (assuming population, road systems and automobiles on par with the contemporary real world). The location is unspecified; it is Earth-like, but not necessarily Earth. (As long as "Earth-like plants and animals" are plausible, feel free to play with the planet!)
- Location A has [sub]tropical vegetation and at least one valley/canyon of moderate size. (Something like southern California, or Hawaii, or your stereotypical jungle/rainforest. Basically, I want to transplant something that closely resembles the San Diego zoo here). It needs to be close to a decent sized urban area, but doesn't need to be especially flat.
- Location B is somewhat more temperate and has a mixture of trees (possibly both evergreen and deciduous) and grasses, the latter of which can be due to human activity. It can be a little arid, but closer to the North American East Coast, Midwest or Pacific Northwest is preferred. It needs to be flat enough to support a light to heavy suburban population, as well as several specific locations that are "mostly" flat. (In other words, it isn't San Francisco or the side of a mountain.) Bonus points if the trees change color in autumn.
- Location C has a typical annual snowfall of at least 0.3m. Ideally, C and B would be the same place, or at least within about 15-20 minutes of each other.
Is it possible for such locations/climates/biomes to exist in such proximity? If so, what major geological or geothermal features and/or differences in elevation would be necessary to achieve this? (Maybe the top and bottom of a mesa? A flat-rimmed caldera, with A in the bottom and B on the rim? Maybe location A has some sort of geothermal heat source?)
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