Scenes from Central California

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Driving up to northern California earlier this month, I saw all the icicles hanging off the frozen citrus trees and wondered if the crop was a goner. Guess so, based on last week’s news of major losses. I bought 5 navel oranges for $1 on Friday; word is they’ll be at least $1 a piece by the end of next week. Guacamole served at Super Bowl parties will likely take a bigger bite out of the food budget due to destroyed avocado crops here.

It took me awhile to appreciate the quiet beauty of the vast agricultural land that dominates interstate 5 between LA’s San Fernando Valley and the wind farms and house-laden hillsides of the San Francisco Bay area, where we were headed. Rows upon rows of plant life are rarely broken up by buildings and billboards and as such, like the narrower highway itself, they seem endless. In the past few years, though, I’ve grown grateful for the change of scenery since these trips always heighten my appreciation for the people who help put food on our table. Thanks to numerous pit stops on this past trip, I’ve got a few shots to show you what I mean.

Pictured above are dormant fruit trees next to the Buttonwillow Rest Area.



Rather than billboards, the far more utilitarian farmers use the sides of trailers to hang signs advertising an upcoming Ag World Expo or, yearround, reminding us that water is what keeps their crops -- and us -- going. One of the amazing sites that you can't really see from the roadside is the giant aquaduct that runs through the Central Valley.

Livestock, especially cattle, pepper the landscape, represented by the tiny black dots in the picture below.



One welcomed site after a day of this kind of driving is a mountain pass known as The Grapevine. It's the geographical demarcation between Central and Southern California. Old yellow signs still warn motorists to turn off their A/C during the long climb, but few do anymore. Cars have come a long way, and so have we by this point.



Below is Pyramid Lake in the Angeles National Forest. A nice way to say 'Welcome Home,' don't you think?

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