This is a section of abandoned roadway, paved in 1919, within Grapevine Canyon, near PM 8.0 on the east side of the canyon. This section was bypassed in 1933 by a newer alignment of US 99.
Featured Image – 12/11/2018
All posts by Michael F Ballard
US 6 on US 6
In mid-October, I went on a road trip, part of which covered a section of US 6. It was the first time I had taken US 6 on a motorcycle, let alone my US 6 plated one. I felt it was a good opportunity to take a photo.
Updates
There have been a few things going on as of late which have taken me away from working on the site. I have a backlog of photos to add to my US 6 tour from a trip I took recently, as well as other updates to other pages. Until recently, I worked for the DMV, something which was rather stressful toward the end, which made it difficult to work on my projects. This site is one of my larger projects, of course, but I have more than this going on. I have also been working on a geological study of an area of San Diego. Its goal is to create more precise mapping of the marine terraces in the area as well as learn more about the geology of where I live. This project and more have been basically set aside until recently.
Now, as I said, I worked for the DMV. I no longer do. I still work for the state, this time with the Division of the State Architect. I help certify that schools and other essential state buildings are built to proper codes regarding the seismic, structural, fire and life safety, as well as disabled access. It is a lot of fun working with engineers and architects on a daily basis. This new job, as well as no longer searching for a new job, has relieved me of the stress that I was previously dealing with. My mind is finally free. So, with that in mind I intend to be working on updating this site and adding a lot more to it.
In addition to the new job, something else has also come up. While not under the best of circumstances, I have recently become president of the Ridge Route Preservation Organization, a group that is dedicated to preserving and protecting the historic Ridge Route between Castaic and Gorman here in southern California. I think it will be a lot of fun and I look forward to meeting with the many other groups that can help our cause.
Working on this site has brought me a lot of joy over the years and will continue to do so for many more. I hope that the site has helped increase the understanding of the geology and infrastructure that makes up southern California. Thank you all for your support.
Server problems, for now
Well, I hoped the new server wouldn’t have problems, but it does seem to at times during periods of heavy traffic. It isn’t that big a deal except the site gets turned off during those periods. I cannot afford a dedicated server, so I must deal with the problem as is. As such, there may be outages in the future. The site will persevere as it has for the last 23 years. Thank you for continued support and interest in the site.
Fire in Grapevine Canyon, Kern County
It would seem that both ends of the Central Valley are having issues. Yesterday, a fire broke out along I-5 in Grapevine Canyon, known by Kern County Fire as the Water Fire, most likely named as it was near one of the watering holes along the grade. The cause may have been a truck fire which spread to vegetation. From photos and videos, it looks like the fire burned along the southbound side from near PM 7.0 to 7.5. This happens to by along my cleanup section. I will be doing a thorough investigation when time allows, most likely in October. This section includes a two sections with original wooden railing, albeit damaged from previous fires in the canyon. I will post photos on my Twitter account as well as this site when I get them.
For now, see the Kern County Fire twitter account for current details.
https://twitter.com/kerncountyfire/
Be safe out there and really be careful around the brush. Too many fires are being caused by carelessness, nevermind the fires that have been the result of arson.