Dec. 2008
This is what I love- empty backroads on a crisp, sunny December day. A Tuesday to be exact. Not a soul around and miles of winding asphalt ahead. My destination was a familiar one, but my route very unusual.
Day 1- Santa Cruz to San Luis Obispo. Day 2- S.L.O. to L.A...the long way all the way! Excuse the boring road pictures, especially the ones with bugs and splatters as all of these were taken while I was driving.
HWY 25, just south of Hollister, weaves behind Pinnacles State Park. The road here is smooth and very empty. Not many houses this far out of town. I took a right on 198 and crossed west under HWY 101 to San Lucas Rd and raced over the aged concrete to Jolon Road south. Pure out there.
Lunch Break. Quiet spot along Nacimiento Lake. A nice road leads from here into Paso Robles.
Day 2 took me north from SLO momentarily on 101 to Santa Margarita where HWY 58 begins. This sign above says it all.
HWY 58 heading east toward California's Central Valley. Not much out here other than ranches and hunting areas. This road is a true gem and one that not many Californians are aware of. Granted, it takes you nowhere fast, but sometimes it's nice to go fast in the middle of nowhere. Great elevation changes, very nice asphalt quality and again- nobody around.
Slicing through the Carizo Plain, an oddity of California. A remote, flat and open valley contrasting greatly with the buckled hills in the background that were shaped by the San Andreas Fault. Here the dips come fast and often and it's a challenge not to let-off the throttle.
Just past Simmler, racing across the California Valley. Fault looming ahead.
Here you crest the Carrisa Highway (58) near the McKittrick Summit and begin switchbacks all the way to the oil town of Taft. Out in the distance under that valley sludge is Bakersfield. Only real hazards (other than falling off the cliffs) were the big rigs running in my lane.
After Taft and Maricopa, you climb over the back of the coastal mountains near Ventura via the Maricopa Highway. East of Ojai, HWY 33 appears to have been built for driving pleasure. Views from here are amazing- peering down valleys to the ocean and the Channel Islands beyond. An amazing stretch of road and probably emptiest during winter months.
HWY 23 crosses over the mountains from Westlake Village to Malibu. It is very tight, smooth and windy. The elevation changes are not for the timid and driving it quickly should be left for those who have it down (as the landscaping truck that ended up on it's roof in front of me proved perfectly).
HWY 23 looks like it drops off into the ocean...and if you blow it bad enough, it could probably happen. A Lotus Exige passed me and gave a thumbs up. Perfect car for this road, and I'd bet the driver knows it well.
On the way back to Santa Cruz. My trusty steed on one of my favorite roads in Santa Barbara- Painted Cave Road. I was lucky enough to memorize it while living in the area and on a drizzly day, with no one to block my way, I gave it a thorough "going over" complete with a touch of opposite lock. Ah, memories...
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