Here are a few pictures of a deserted part of California, both because it's close to being a desert and because we seemed to be the only people driving there, apart from rare local cars and a couple of oil trucks.
This highway 33 which is also named Petroleum highway is running along the western side of the San Joaquim valley and it is one of the oldest oil regions of the U.S.A. Ther's a magic here, and it was great to walk out of the car and let the place impress you, only that the outside temperature (104 ° F) was particularly punishing.
If you drive through this place, make sure to stop at the McKittrick cafe-Hotel and ask to one of the 3 women working there for the best draft bud of the region...
We had all along this Petroleum highway the best Mexicana I could dream of, with a local radio station that probably provided a homey feel for the many agriculture workers further north on the San Joaquim Valley. Listening to Vicente Fernandez (is there a more iconic song than Los Mandados ?) and his likes added to the magnificent desert landscape. The song Los Mandados (lmisten below) tells about crossing illegally the border to the US and dealing with La Migra (the immigration police), the song was composed by Jorge Lerma and first recorded by Vicente Fernandez in 1965.
Stop in the desert
Lone rig
Red-head rig
Road graffiti
Cables and rigs
Tower and wooden poles
Straight highway 33
Crowded
Rig and tower
McKittrick's Oakwood Hotel Cafe Bar
Warning sign
3 rigs 3 poles
Crowd 2
Trailers, poles and rigs
Last rig -- nearing Los Padres
Water tanks
Solar oil
Big tank
Curve
Winding terrain
Happy desert flowers
Dry parchland
Bushes and foothills
Climbing into Los Padres
This highway 33 which is also named Petroleum highway is running along the western side of the San Joaquim valley and it is one of the oldest oil regions of the U.S.A. Ther's a magic here, and it was great to walk out of the car and let the place impress you, only that the outside temperature (104 ° F) was particularly punishing.
If you drive through this place, make sure to stop at the McKittrick cafe-Hotel and ask to one of the 3 women working there for the best draft bud of the region...
We had all along this Petroleum highway the best Mexicana I could dream of, with a local radio station that probably provided a homey feel for the many agriculture workers further north on the San Joaquim Valley. Listening to Vicente Fernandez (is there a more iconic song than Los Mandados ?) and his likes added to the magnificent desert landscape. The song Los Mandados (lmisten below) tells about crossing illegally the border to the US and dealing with La Migra (the immigration police), the song was composed by Jorge Lerma and first recorded by Vicente Fernandez in 1965.
