Tell me about the desert area of Kern County! (Bakersfield: to rent, hotel)

[V8 Vega]

Johannesburg, Red Mountain and Randsburg are 3 little mining towns close to each other and I haven't been there in years but they were near ghost towns.
Years ago I was real active in desert motorcycle racing and drove or rode there frequently.
A lot of old mines and mining stuff around, interesting. Some people live there.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Brandon Graves

I'm kind of appealed by this, as well.

What was the reason again?

For me, it would be the simplicity of it all.

Originally Posted by NJ Brazen_3133

Yeh, there is a cute white girl working at the Starbucks located in some supermarket on Rte 178 in Ridgecrest

That would probably be the Stater Bros.

[Brandon Graves]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

And you Brandon will not get to China Lake without a military clearance, which is only given to those who have a legitimate reason to be there. I am not allowed to talk about what I've seen there (they make this pretty clear on your way in and out), but there are streets in the southern portion (as can be seen on satellite maps) which previously had housing on them, all of which was leveled at least two decades ago.

Is it because China Lake is a military base?

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

The culture in many of these towns is primarily derived from fairly to staunchly conservative White Americans (many of whom are also native-Californians), who range from working class to upper-middle class, with a skew toward the lower end (there are a lot of lower level jobs staffed by Whites in this area, something that you simply don't see in the rest of Southern California, which can be a surprise for some folks {I'm not trying to be politically incorrect or correct here, it's just the way it is}. There is a notable lack of Latinos in comparison to most of the rest of California, and a noted comparable lack of diversity overall (along with plenty of open racism).

Wow... that is pretty shocking...

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

It isn't nearly as religious or bible-thumping as you would think, and things that most of us would consider pretty taboo are a lot more tolerated than average IMO (alcoholism, sexual abuse, incest, physical abuse, general criminality, drugs, infidelity, broken homes). There is a ton of support for the military. Country music. Welfare, food stamps, section 8, and people living in trailers not terribly suitable for human habitation, and plenty of people with criminal records. But also a strong middle and fairly visible upper-middle class, including many with advanced educations.

No rap music?...

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Brandon Graves

Is it because China Lake is a military base?



Wow... that is pretty shocking...



No rap music?...

Yes, China Lake is a military base.

Yes, the N-word, the bean word, and the word that rhymes with Bic, very common. It is very unlike the CV in this regard, primarily because there is comparably no history of agriculture, manufacturing, services, tourism, etc. Imagine every bad stereotype about rural Middle America (most of which are untrue, overall), and imagine a place that actually tries to be like that when it doesn't have to.

KRAJ reaches Ridgecrest, but it doesn't go much further north than that. For most of the time I lived there, it was an Oldies station, but it flipped formats c. 2007. Rap isn't any less popular there than anywhere else IMO, just don't expect to hear it in the bars (classic rock and/or country).

[Brandon Graves]

Who here can tell me about the Kern River Valley and the towns (Bodfish, Kernville, Onyx, Lake Isabella, Weldon, Wofford Heights, Riverkern, Canebrake, Mountain Mesa, Squirrel Mountain Valley, and Southlake)? What are each of the towns like? Is the Kern River Valley a desert or steppe?

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Brandon Graves

Who here can tell me about the Kern River Valley and the towns (Bodfish, Kernville, Onyx, Lake Isabella, Weldon, Wofford Heights, Riverkern, Canebrake, Mountain Mesa, Squirrel Mountain Valley, and Southlake)? What are each of the towns like? Is the Kern River Valley a desert or steppe?

East of Canebrake is Walker Pass, which is kinda scrubby/piney (including with Joshua Trees/Yucca), and snowy in winter. Canebrake has tons of Joshua Trees, and semi-piney mountains in the distance.

Onyx, very small town, it can get decent snow. Desert-ish.

Weldon is similar, but I swear it had a gas station (I can't find it now). More like steppe surrounded by desert mountains.

I slept in Mountain Mesa once. Not much to it. Same for Southlake. You might as well call these Lake Isabella too.

Lake Isabella is the capital of it all, but it ain't much, though it has the most services. The lake is a reservoir, thus it dwindles in size, and there is apparently a town buried under it. The lake is very clean. Kind of scrubby mountains surrounding, but steppe-ish at ground level.

Wofford Heights can also get decent snow. Mostly scrubby.

Kernville is a nice little town, kind of transitional from desert to mountains, one of the classic California looks IMO. Touristy.

The whole area is in pretty deep economic decline. It's mostly retired people, it's fairly poor overall, but still a bit of a playground, but not overwhelmingly so.

North of Kernville, you can take a bunch of forest/back roads through the Sequoia National Forest, end up in Kennedy Meadows, and back down a terrifying switchback road to Inyokern.

[Brandon Graves]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

East of Canebrake is Walker Pass, which is kinda scrubby/piney (including with Joshua Trees/Yucca), and snowy in winter. Canebrake has tons of Joshua Trees, and semi-piney mountains in the distance.

Onyx, very small town, it can get decent snow. Desert-ish.

Weldon is similar, but I swear it had a gas station (I can't find it now). More like steppe surrounded by desert mountains.

I slept in Mountain Mesa once. Not much to it. Same for Southlake. You might as well call these Lake Isabella too.

Lake Isabella is the capital of it all, but it ain't much, though it has the most services. The lake is a reservoir, thus it dwindles in size, and there is apparently a town buried under it. The lake is very clean. Kind of scrubby mountains surrounding, but steppe-ish at ground level.

Wofford Heights can also get decent snow. Mostly scrubby.

Kernville is a nice little town, kind of transitional from desert to mountains, one of the classic California looks IMO. Touristy.

The whole area is in pretty deep economic decline. It's mostly retired people, it's fairly poor overall, but still a bit of a playground, but not overwhelmingly so.

North of Kernville, you can take a bunch of forest/back roads through the Sequoia National Forest, end up in Kennedy Meadows, and back down a terrifying switchback road to Inyokern.

A town buried under Lake Isabella (lake)? Where did you hear about this?

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Brandon Graves

A town buried under Lake Isabella (lake)? Where did you hear about this?

It's a true legend.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Isabella

^First paragraph, last sentence.

[JB316]

Positive vote for Kernville here. Loved visiting that place, has a real cool vibe. Nice place to go for outdoor activities like rafting or hiking. They also have a nice brewery. Beautiful river runs right through it.

[Brandon Graves]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

It's a true legend.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Isabella

^First paragraph, last sentence.

Oh, that now makes sense. So, the old Kernville was flooded, and then the "new" Kernville was established?