October trip to the hills

Near the end of October Bundu Trek joined with two other vehicles for a day trip up into the hills above the Kern area.  The weather was gorgous with moderate temperatures and sunny (at least at the beginning of the trip) with no wind and no blowing dust as we traveled.  A great change from our usual desert runs that are usually done in a more challenging environment.

After airing down our tires to lessen wheel spin and limit damage to the roads and trails, we set off to, as the Pokey Little Puppy said "to see the wide, wide, world".

Starting out on a nice and easy hard packed dirt road

A ranch we passed that was using an old railroad box car for storage.  How the heck did they get it there?

One of several ranches we passed as we climbed in altitude.  The grass and trees in the area were extremely dry from the drought.

Our first stop was a former Forest Service fire observation tower, now  an overnight stay experience.  For $40 a night you get the tower and the grounds around it.  No one was home when we arrived.

The view was spectacular!

An easy way to lift supplies up the tower!

Bundu Trek's wireless operator found a small snake which she moved out of harm's way.

Some bicylists who stopped by in the mid point of their 50 mile or so bike trek.  We shared water with them and they were very grateful!

This place had the nicest outhouse I have ever experienced!

A tarantula spider that was strolling along our trail

The higher we went the greener the vegetation became.  A nice change from the desert! 

After some miles the trail turned into a motorcycle-only trail so we unfortunately had to turn around and retrace our route.  We ended up at Lake Isabella for a tasty home style dinner and the long drive home.  A really great time was had by all!