What about bovines in the road?
I assure you, they’re waiting ahead!
Although I didn’t observe any cattle on Lake Isabella water-skiing, jet-skiing or windsurfing, plenty of non-bovines do. The infamous cows of this ride seem to prefer hiking and camping as their form of recreation and there’s plenty of that higher up in the mountains.
Lake Isabella is one of the largest reservoirs in California and is the main water supply for Bakersfield. In 1953, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dammed the Kern River to create this recreation area amidst the lower Sierra Nevada Mountains. So it’s here we exit Rt. 178 and head north on Rt. 155 along the waterfront to Wofford Heights. Rt. 155 takes an abrupt left turn into the mountains at about 8 miles, although you might miss it, since the pavement itself goes into town. Going into town is a good idea anyway since there won’t be any gas for a while. Wofford Heights is a relaxing, lakeside community with less than 3000 residents so grab some fuel for the bike and belly.
Heading up into the mountains along Rt. 155 is just as twisty as Rt. 178 but it’s less traveled.
The highest elevation on this road is also the highest on our trip: Greenhorn Mountain Summit at 6102 feet. Greenhorn Mountain would be more aptly named Bovine Mountain since for six miles along the road, primarily west of the summit, the area also serves as open range grazing for cattle in the Sequoia National Forest. Now I’ve ridden through other open range areas around the Western US and I have encountered a lone cow or so in the road a few times over the years. However, for the two days I spent there this past weekend, the bovine critters made themselves very well known. With all the acres of mountain forests around them, several dozen preferred to hang out on the roadside shoulder, or even directly on the pavement. And if you like to do a little adventure riding off the pavement, they seem to REALLY like the dirt roads.
