The Angeles Crest Highway is a two-lane (one lane of travel in each direction) highway over the
San Gabriel Mountains
The San Gabriel Mountains ( es, Sierra de San Gabriel) are a mountain range located in northern Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Tr ...
, in
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...
. Its route is to/through the
San Gabriel Mountains National Monument
The San Gabriel Mountains National Monument is a United States National Monument managed by the U.S. Forest Service, which encompasses parts of the Angeles National Forest and the San Bernardino National Forest in California. On October 10, 2014 ...
and the
Angeles National Forest
The Angeles National Forest (ANF) of the United States Forest Service, U.S. Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains and Sierra Pelona Mountains, primarily within Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County in southern Calif ...
. With the exception of a -long section in
La Cañada Flintridge
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...
, the entire route is part of
California State Route 2
State Route 2 (SR 2) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It connects the Los Angeles Basin with the San Gabriel Mountains and the Victor Valley in the Mojave Desert. The highway's southwestern end is at the intersection of C ...
.
The road is in length, with its western terminus at the intersection at
Foothill Boulevard in
La Cañada Flintridge
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...
and its eastern terminus at the
Pearblossom Highway (State Route 138) northeast of
Wrightwood
Wrightwood is a census-designated place in San Bernardino County, California. It sits at an elevation of . The population was 4,525 at the 2010 census, up from the population of 3,837 at the 2000 census. Wrightwood is located northeast of Lo ...
. The majority of the route passes through the San Gabriel Mountains located north of the
Greater Los Angeles Area
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...
. Segments of the road reach elevations above , with a summit of at the
Dawson Saddle
Dawson Saddle is a saddle and mountain pass over the San Gabriel Mountains located in northeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. At , it is the highest point along the Angeles Crest Highway and the second highest mountain pass ...
, which makes this road one of the highest in Southern California.
The segment from La Cañada Flintridge to the
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
–
San Bernardino
San Bernardino (; Spanish language, Spanish for Bernardino of Siena, "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a ...
county line is known as the Angeles Crest Scenic Byway, which is both a
National Forest Scenic Byway
The National Forest Scenic Byways are roads that have been designated by the U.S. Forest Service as scenic byways. Many are also National Scenic Byways (NSB). The program was initiated in 1987.
__TOC__
List
The following roadways were listed b ...
and an officially designated
California Scenic Highway.
Route description
![Angeles Crest Highway 2019](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Angeles_Crest_Highway_2019.jpg)
The route is best described as mountain-rural. Because the route passes through the protected San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and Angeles National Forest, development is very limited. There are not many buildings between La Cañada Flintridge and Wrightwood save for
Newcomb's Ranch
Newcomb's Ranch is a roadhouse at in elevation in the Angeles National Forest, near Los Angeles, California. It is the only private property along the Angeles Crest Highway and is very popular with motorcyclists and is called "the informal head ...
, and forest service
campground
A campsite, also known as a campground or camping pitch, is a place used for camping, overnight stay in an outdoor area. In British English, a ''campsite'' is an area, usually divided into a number of pitches, where people can camp overnight u ...
s and
visitor center
A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center, tourist information center, is a physical location that provides tourist information to visitors.
Types of visitor center
A visit ...
s. Other points of interest along the route include the
Mountain High
Mountain High resort is a winter resort in the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles County in California. Mountain High is one of the most-visited resorts in Southern California. The resort is located along State Route 2 west of Wrightwood, Cali ...
and
Mt. Waterman ski areas.
Mount Wilson and its
Mount Wilson Observatory
The Mount Wilson Observatory (MWO) is an astronomical observatory in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The MWO is located on Mount Wilson, a peak in the San Gabriel Mountains near Pasadena, northeast of Los Angeles.
The observat ...
and various radio/television transmitters are about 4.5 miles from the junction of Mount Wilson Road and Angeles Crest Highway. Depending on visibility conditions, impressive views of the
Los Angeles Basin
The Los Angeles Basin is a sedimentary basin located in Southern California, in a region known as the Peninsular Ranges. The basin is also connected to an anomalous group of east-west trending chains of mountains collectively known as the Tr ...
are possible from the vicinity of Mount Wilson. The most frequent hindrances of what can be seen are the smog and/or a
marine layer
A marine layer is an air mass that develops over the surface of a large body of water, such as an ocean or large lake, in the presence of a temperature inversion. The inversion itself is usually initiated by the cooling effect of the water on th ...
covering the basin below.
The westernmost segment of the highway, combined with
Angeles Forest Highway
The Angeles Forest Highway is a road over the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles County, California. It connects the Los Angeles Basin with the Antelope Valley and western Mojave Desert. Maintained by the Los Angeles County Department of Public ...
to/from
State Route 14, is heavily travelled by southbound traffic in the morning (and corresponding northbound traffic in the afternoon) that comprises commuters who live in the
Antelope Valley
The Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County, California, and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated between the Tehachapi, Sierra Pelona, and the ...
and work in the
Greater Los Angeles Area
Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million in 2021, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino Coun ...
. The route is a convenient alternative to the
Antelope Valley Freeway
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
(State Route 14) and the
Golden State Freeway
Interstate 5 (I-5) is a major north–south route of the Interstate Highway System in the United States, stretching from the Mexican border at the San Ysidro crossing to the Canadian border near Blaine, Washington. The segment of I-5 in ...
(
Interstate 5
Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Califor ...
), both located to the west, for reaching the
Foothill Freeway
The Foothill Freeway is a freeway in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, California, running from the Sylmar district of Los Angeles east to Redlands. The western segment is signed as Interstate 210 (I-210) from its western end at I-5 to S ...
(
Interstate 210) and
San Gabriel Valley
The San Gabriel Valley ( es, Valle de San Gabriel) is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, lying immediately to the east of the eastern city limits of the city of Los Angeles, and occupying the vast majority of the eastern part ...
. Because the road is a two-lane highway, its vehicle capacity is significantly lower than either of the two freeways.
In contrast, the remainder of the Angeles Crest Highway is lightly traveled. Typically, this traffic is composed of vacationers, sightseers, and locals. The three areas comprising Mountain High ski resort are just west of
Wrightwood
Wrightwood is a census-designated place in San Bernardino County, California. It sits at an elevation of . The population was 4,525 at the 2010 census, up from the population of 3,837 at the 2000 census. Wrightwood is located northeast of Lo ...
.
History
Construction of Angeles Crest Highway began in 1929. It was originally intended to be a
fire access road. In 1941 construction stopped because of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. In 1946, after the war, construction resumed; the completed highway eventually opened in 1956. The road was constructed by prison labor from Camp 37, which has since been razed. Division of Highways (now known as
CalTrans
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an Executive (government), executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the Government of California#State agencies, cabinet-level California State Tran ...
) staff lived at a site called Cedar Springs. The staff is now located at Chilao Flats. Children of the staff attended Chilao Mountain School, a one-room school; the school has been closed for several years.
Angeles Crest Highway was originally planned to be upgraded to a
freeway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...
in the 1950s, but was later considered geographically improbable and the plans were abandoned.
Roads in the San Gabriel Mountains have a high number of single-vehicle auto and motorcycle accidents. As an example, in the predawn hours of December 8, 2004,
a van plunged off the side of Angeles Forest Highway at about north of its junction with the Angeles Crest Highway, killing 3 of the 10 people in the van. The van was a
carpool
Carpooling (also car-sharing, ride-sharing and lift-sharing) is the sharing of car journeys so that more than one person travels in a car, and prevents the need for others to have to drive to a location themselves.
By having more people usi ...
carrying workers of the
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center in the City of La Cañada Flintridge, California, United States.
Founded in the 1930s by Caltech researchers, JPL is owned by NASA an ...
from the
Antelope Valley
The Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County, California, and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated between the Tehachapi, Sierra Pelona, and the ...
to work in Pasadena. It was determined upon investigation by the
CHP that the driver fell asleep at the wheel of the van. The Angeles Crest Highway and Angeles Forest Highway have figured in various murders, not as scenes of the murders but as drop-off points for the bodies of the victims, including that of Linda Sobek, a model kidnapped and found dead in the area in 1995.
The motion picture ''
Donnie Darko
''Donnie Darko'' is a 2001 American science fiction psychological thriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly and produced by Flower Films. It stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Mary McDonnell, Katha ...
'', released in 2001, was partially filmed on Angeles Crest Highway. In the opening scene with Donnie waking up in the middle of the road, next to his bike, the camera zooms in on Donnie, then loops around and shows a view of the valley seen from Angeles Crest Highway. The highway is also used later in the movie for other scenes. The Angeles Crest Highway is also used extensively in the motion picture ''
The Love Bug
''The Love Bug'' is a 1968 American comedy film directed by Robert Stevenson and the first in a franchise by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Buena Vista Distribution that starred an anthropomorphic pearl-white, fabric-sunroofed 1963 ...
'' for racing scenes, as well as in the sequel film ''
Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo
''Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo'' is a 1977 American comedy adventure film and the third installment of ''The Love Bug'' film series made by Walt Disney Productions starring Herbie—the white 1963 Volkswagen racing Beetle with a mind of its own. ...
'', where the highway doubles for "The French Alps".
Access and closures
![Minor rockfall on Angeles Crest Highway 2014-11-05](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Minor_rockfall_on_Angeles_Crest_Highway_2014-11-05.jpg)
Intersections with other roads are few, which can be problematic in the event of road closures due to acts of nature such as landslides and fires. At about the midpoint of the highway is the junction with the north terminus of
State Route 39. However, access to State Route 39 is not possible as it is closed indefinitely to automobile traffic because of persistent landslides along its route. Therefore, travelers to the
Angeles National Forest
The Angeles National Forest (ANF) of the United States Forest Service, U.S. Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains and Sierra Pelona Mountains, primarily within Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County in southern Calif ...
preferring the Angeles Crest Highway corridor should expect to be on the Angeles Crest Highway throughout much of its length, use available alternate routing where possible, or be willing to turn around and retrace their trip at any point along its route if necessary.
The Angeles Crest Highway is normally closed in the winter from Islip Saddle to Vincent Gap due to rockfall and avalanche hazards.
The winter storms of 2004/05 caused several landslides and significant damage to the highway. Thus, the highway never reopened in the summer of 2005. Damage to the highway was estimated to be over $4 million as of November 2005. Terri Kasinga, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Transportation, stated in November 2005 "It is definitely not going to open until next spring (of 2006)".
However, a March 2006 storm caused even more extensive damage to the highway, including a complete washout of a large section of roadway, further delaying the reopening of the highway. The long closure caused concern for the United States Forest Service and other emergency services agencies because it hindered access, particularly with firefighting efforts,
and it hurt business in Wrightwood. After a four-and-a-half year closure, the highway reopened on May 20, 2009. Repairs included the construction of a new bridge intended to allow landslides to pass underneath without damaging the road. The work cost $10.5 million.
["Angeles Crest Highway through Wrightwood reopens"]
By Nathan McIntire, Staff Writer Posted: 5/20/2009 4:34:02 pm PDT ''Pasadena Star News''
A moratorium on three-axles trucks was imposed in 2009 following the deaths of two people when a
tractor trailer
A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semitruck, (or semi, eighteen-wheeler, big rig, tractor-trailer or, by synecdoche, a semitrailer) is the combination of a tractor unit and one or more semi-trailers to carry freight. A semi-trailer ...
lost control and crashed into a La Cañada Flintridge business (other California highways have similar truck bans such as
I-580 and
SR 85 but have been implemented for different reasons).
[
]Cell phone
A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whil ...
reception
Reception is a noun form of ''receiving'', or ''to receive'' something, such as art, experience, information, people, products, or vehicles. It may refer to:
Astrology
* Reception (astrology), when a planet is located in a sign ruled by another ...
can be sporadic and, when available, signal strength and clarity is poor. Although the surrounding mountainous terrain is the primary reason for this, the limited presence of, and/or proximity to, cellular communication antennas to receive and transmit signals along the route contributes to the problem.
The Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act passed in December 2004, protects the Angeles National Forest. Although anyone can park at the side of the road and access the wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
along the side of the road, doing so for extended periods of time, such as camping or hiking, requires a National Forest Adventure Pass
The National Forest Adventure Pass is a recreation fee pass issued by the United States Forest Service that permits bearers in designated regions of four National Forests in Southern California to park their cars for the purpose of recreation. T ...
available for a $5.00 fee.
2009 Station Fire closure
During the 2009 wildfire season the large fire known as the " Station Fire" burned the mountains through which Route 2 travels. The fire damaged the signs, guardrails, and lane striping, as well as leaving large boulders and other debris all over the road. As a result, the highway was closed by Caltrans
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an Executive (government), executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the Government of California#State agencies, cabinet-level California State Tran ...
until November 30, 2009. It was briefly re-opened until mud and rock slides in early 2010 forced a portion of the highway to be closed again from 2 miles east of the I-210 junction to 14 miles east of La Cañada Flintridge. It reopened on June 3, 2011.
See also
*
*
*
References
External links
Official Angeles National Forest website
Caltrans: Current road conditions and closures on Angeles Crest Highway
Geocities page on Angeles Crest Highway (Archived)
2009-10-25)''.
*''Angeles Crest Highway news'':
Los Angeles Times—"Man About Town" column: ''"Rough and humble on the Angeles Crest Highway"''
:* Wikinews: Story on JPL van accident
Pasadenastarnews.com: Charges dismissed in JPL van accident
''Motorcycle Classics'' article on riding the Angeles Crest Highway to Newcomb's Ranch
{{DEFAULTSORT:Angeles Crest Highway
Infrastructure completed in 1956
1956 establishments in California
Roads in Los Angeles County, California
State Scenic Highway System (California)
Angeles National Forest
San Gabriel Mountains
San Gabriel Mountains National Monument
La Cañada Flintridge, California
Wrightwood, California
Tourist attractions in Los Angeles County, California
Named highways in California