Lake Isabella Ride

[roadrunner]

Took a ride from Lancaster to Lake Isabella through the Tehachapi mountains.  I posted a couple of these pictures in the ABC contest already.  It had rained the day before so the air was clear and perfect temperature for riding!     (total ~250 miles)

Leaving Lancaster I passed through a neighboring rural community called Antelope Acres (mostly larger parcels and horse properties) and spotted this unusual yard art ..  



Here is the California Aqueduct looking toward the Tehachapi mountains.  Although the clouds look ominous, I encountered no preciptation on the ride ..  


Stopped in the Tehachapi mountains to capture a photo of the wind machines.  The wind farm here is the largest in the world (in terms of output).


Noticed an oddity here also.  A hillside was dotted with prickly pear cacti covered with sunshades ..  


At the beginning of the 40-mile Caliente-Bodfish road this sign appears.  

 
A number of years ago I encountered a cattle drive on this road.  Pulled over and watched the action for 15-20 minutes before the road cleared!
No such encounter on this ride, tho.


Typical view on the Caliente-Bodfish road.  


Made it to Lake Isabella  





Here is the route ...

[JB1290]

Great pics. Looked like a nice ride. 

[fishmeister]

Thanks for sharing....why is the cacti covered?

[roadrunner]

Thanks for sharing....why is the cacti covered?

I am wondering too!  Tho we do some strange things in Cali ... little fences for tortoises that run 20 miles, for example..

[drdubb]

Cool trip. Thanks for the map. I need to learn to do that.

[Burgi]

Nice shots RR! 

[hppants]

Looks like you are having fun on your NH as well.  A cattle drive would be a neat thing to see.  I've never seen a wind farm.

[bajakirch]

I've never seen a wind farm.

We have a few of them here in WI. I drove by one on my way back from camping on Sunday and saw all were shut down. Not sure, but I think I read something saying they shut them down during the fall bird migration because the blades can kill hundreds of birds when the flocks fly through the area. They look like they're moving slowly, but the size is deceptive. I'm told the ends of the blades are moving at something like 100 mph.

[Moedad]

Good report, Runner! What wind screen do you have on your bike? Looks the same as mine (Givi A650 - see below) in your pictures.

[roadrunner]

Good report, Runner! What wind screen do you have on your bike? Looks the same as mine (Givi A650 - see below) in your pictures.

You're right!  In fact, it was a picture of your bike with an A650 that convinced me to order one!  It's working out fine and will really help as the weather gets colder. 

[luckylindy]

Nice report & pics.

[Brittles]

Very nice pictures!! 

[OhCrap]

Thanks for sharing, I love the pictures. It's absolutely beautiful out there!

[SirSeanSean]

Gosh darnit. You are trying to have just a normal ride when all of the sudden a gorgeous scenery is in your way. That is just so typical. Geesh!



Looks like you had an awesome ride. And the pictures look fantastic!
Thanks for sharing.

[roadrunner]

Cool trip. Thanks for the map. I need to learn to do that.

I used Google Maps.  Select "Get Directions" and add destinations as required to build the route.  Then I used a screen snapshot utility to capture the image to a jpeg file.