Members get a taste of car travel circa 1915 on a tour of the Ridge Route, the curvy road that united California

It wasn't the typical Wilderness Adventures Section outing. No hiking was involved, just a reliable car that could handle traveling along an isolated mountain road with 627 curves.

We began our Sept. 18, 2004, outing at Templin Highway and I-5 where 15 curious participants met with two historians, Sidney and Jack Kelley of the Ridge Route Communities Museum and Historical Society. Sidney and Jack provided us with an initial 20-minute orientation, citing the route's historic significance as one of the main reasons California became a national economic power. Afterwards, Sidney took a group photo at the intersection of Templin Highway and the Old Ridge Route before leading us onto this scenic section of road where we never reached speeds faster than 25 miles per hour. Our tour would take five and a half hours.

What is the Ridge Route?
Prior to 1915, motorists who wanted to travel from Los Angeles to points north were compelled to either go by way of what is now current U.S. 101 along the coast or by a circuitous route by way of Mojave and Bakersfield over what is now SR-14 and SR-58. The first highway built to cross the mountains directly was the Ridge Route, which was completed in 1915. Before the road, the trip to the San Joaquin Valley was considered so arduous that serious consideration was made to separating Northern and Southern California. To ease tensions, in 1914, the newly formed California Department of Highways took on the challenge of forging a road through the formidable barrier. Mules were used to pull Fresno Scrapers, a primitive device used in grading the road, with grades not to exceed 6 percent, although in several places 7 percent grades existed. By 1920, the road would be completely paved, in places with four-inch thick concrete.

When it opened to traffic in 1915, the Ridge Route was applauded as an engineering marvel, considered one of the most scientifically constructed mountain roads in the world. This amazing, curvy little road pacified separation anxiety, making it possible to travel to the Central Valley in a day, thereby uniting California.

The Tumble Inn in the 1920s, a popular roadside diner. photo courtesy www.ridgeroute.com

The original 1915 Ridge Route starts at Castaic and winds its way over some 26 miles up to its highest point at 4,233 feet before climbing down to today's Highway 138 at Gorman. During its time, the Ridge Route was variegated with roadside services such as gas stations, hotels, campsites, and restaurants, long-forgotten places that are now memorialized by plaques. As the old route traverses through the Angeles National Forest, hiking is plentiful, with Liebre Mountain its most notable diversion.

Our group not only reveled in the broad, commanding views that extended across the Tehachapis and San Gabriel Mountains, but appreciated the human dimension of what traveling this route must have initially been like. Speed limits were posted at 15 miles per hour, and it could take upwards to nine hours to travel across before reaching the Central Valley. On the way, motorists would visit places such as Kelly's Half Way House, the Tumble Inn, and Sandberg's, and travel a stretch of highway called Deadman's Curve because motorists were known to crash down if taking the bend too fast.

Preserving California's legacy
The Ridge Route began its descent into oblivion when the Ridge Route Alternative (Highway 99) was completed in 1933. This three-lane highway was more direct, eventually growing to a four-lane highway, before it, too, would be superceded by today's eight-lane I-5, completed in 1970.

At one section high up on the Old Ridge Route, our group could view all three highways at the same time, providing us with a powerful perspective on how significant these thoroughfares were in shaping California. As we traveled further along, the untrammeled views we experienced away from the hustle and bustle of I-5 reminded me how traveling on today's superhighways easily obliterates a sense of place and community. Instead of rolled up windows and the comfort of air conditioning, we chose to keep our windows down-despite temperatures in the 90s-so we could enjoy the breezes, scents, and sounds of our natural surroundings. As we did so, I found it hard to imagine that the original travelers on the old route would not pause to take in the charm of one of the roadside attractions. This type of local flavor is becoming increasingly scarce along our superhighways, overshadowed by the quick in-and-out of the familiar McDonald's or Burger King.

The stretch of the Ridge Route between Templin Highway and Gorman was admitted into the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. Recent January rains have made the road impassable and it is currently closed. So that the historic route won't slip away, funding is necessary to keep the road open to the public. Please write to the relevant officials and let them know that the Old Ridge Route should be preserved and maintained as the major piece of California history that it is (see side bar on this page).

Further reading
Ridge Route: The Road That United California by Harrison Irving Scott (2002, revised 2003).

Ridge Route update

Reprinted from www.ridgeroute.com

The 1915 Ridge Route has officially been closed by the Forest Service due to extensive damage as a result of January record rain fall. Unofficial entry onto the road could result in being issued a citation.

Many of the slides have been removed from the Old Ridge Route by utility crews that use the road to access their rights-of-ways. However, eight locations on the Old Ridge Route are severely undermined. Two miles south of Swede's Cut a 75-foot stretch of the Old Ridge Route slipped 15 feet down the canyon making it impossible to get by even with a four-wheel drive vehicle.

Southern California Edison Co. lost a high line tower. A natural gas line of the Southern California Gas Company was severed in three places. Pacific Pipeline Co. suffered approximately 2 million dollars in damages, and Exxon-Mobil is working to stabilize a hillside above the Old Ridge Route that threatens to sever their crude oil line.

For the past 72 years the Forest Service has maintained the Old Ridge Route. When storms damaged the road in the past, the Forest Service applied for and received federal aid for repairs. Currently the Forest Service will not request federal aid due to a dispute with L. A. County as to the ownership of the Old Ridge Route. The Forest Service claims L. A. County owns the road and vice versa.

Without further maintenance this California treasure is in critical danger. Drainage problems on the Old Ridge Route need immediate attention otherwise additional sections of the road will slip down the canyon.

The Ridge Route Preservation Organization is working closely with representatives of the L. A. County Department of Public Works and the Forest Service in an attempt to resolve the ownership issue and find avenues to get the Old Ridge Route repaired.

You can express your concerns regarding the Old Ridge Route to the following representatives:

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
Attn: Michael Antonovich
869 Hahn Hall of Administration
Los Angeles, CA 90012-2713

Cid Morgan, District Ranger
Angeles National Forest
30800 Bouquet Canyon Road
Santa Clarita, CA 91390-1103

Donald L. Wolfe, Acting Director
L. A. Co. Dept. of Public Works
900 So. Freemont Ave.
Alhambra, CA 91803-1331

Congressman Buck McKeon
26650 The Old Road, Suite 203
Santa Clarita, CA 91381-0750

Senator Barbara Boxer
312 No. Spring St. Suite 1748
Los Angeles, CA 90012-2470

Senator Dianne Feinstein
11111 Santa Monica Blvd., Suite 915
Los Angeles, CA 90025-3343