Pearblossom Highway

New thing of the day, drove the Pearblossom highway on the way to Las Vegas.

On the way out of town for the weekend, my coworker suggested a new route. Every time I've driven to Vegas from LA, we take the 210 East, then meet up with the 15 north and go straight on to Vegas. It's a good route, but there's quite a bit of traffic on the 210 at various points.

My coworker said that he usually takes Pearblossom highway. It's up the 5 north, 14 north, then winds through Palmdale, Sierra Highway and finally the 138/Pearblossom Highway to the 15 north. It's a long road through rural areas and no passing lanes. I was a bit worried about getting lost. After all "hey guys, weekend in Vegas, let's take a new shortcut route through the boonies" sounds like the beginning of a scary movie.

My coworker said it saves going through traffic and is mostly on the way. So we tried it and I really enjoyed it. It was neat driving through the small rural towns in California like Little Rock and Pearblossom. It reminded me of the movie Cars - Radiator Springs where there's this neat little forgotten town that no one drives through anymore because they built the highways. It's also neat driving near Edwards Air Force Base and you see a tiny bit of military presence there, like a truck with a missile launcher on top of it.

Overall I hope not too many people take this way to Vegas because I don't want it to get crowded or busy, but it was a good option for us. There are a few downsides. There is no passing lane so if you're stuck behind a slow car, you're stuck. Also, on the way there it's easy to miss the "continuation" of the highway because sometimes the road turned or forked in a confusing way. We nearly missed turn and completely took the wrong fork on the next major shift and had to backtrack. I enjoyed the drive very much, mostly because I was in the passenger seat.

Just make sure your car is in good shape and you're gassed up. Also make sure you have an electronic map device, because, it is in the boonies and you can get rerouted or lost if you take the wrong turns. Signs aren't super easy as in most rural areas. But don't take this road, I don't want it to get crowded for our next trip to Vegas.