2008 NABA Meeting, Kernville, California
Helpful Information – Kern River Valley & Southern Sierra Nevada

The Kern River Valley is at the heart of California’s Highway 178 Corridor, “The Most Interesting Place on the Planet.” The corridor connects Death Valley National Park to the Giant Sequoia National Monument and the Mojave Desert to the mountains of the Sierra Nevada to the Great Central Valley, and the Indian Wells Valley to the Kern River Valley to the San Joaquin Valley.

Bakersfield is the largest city along the Highway 178 Corridor with a population exceeding 300,000. The “Black Gold” oil museum at the Kern County Museum in Bakersfield is considered the finest and most modern in the world. Bakersfield also has the Buena Vista Museum of Natural History (housing a world class fossil collection), and the California Living Museum (CALM - a first rate zoo dedicated to California fauna). A visit to a Basque restaurant is highly recommended. There are seven Basque restaurants from which to choose including Benji’s French Basque, Chateau Basque, Maitia’s Basque Café, Narducci's, Noriega Hotel, Pyrenees Café, Wool Growers (French Basque).

The Kern River Valley is a twenty mile long and one to three mile wide valley set at 2500’-3000’ in the mountains of the southern Sierra Nevada. It is reached from the east by making the scenic drive through Joshua tree and pinyon pine woodland along Hwy. 178 from the Mojave Desert over 5230’ high Walker Pass to the South Fork Valley portion of the Kern River Valley, and from the west by driving Hwy. 178 up the deep and scenic Lower Kern River Canyon to Lake Isabella. From the Giant Sequoia National Monument south to Kernville and Isabella Reservoir, the National Wild & Scenic North Fork Kern River flows through the Upper Kern River Canyon. In 2000, Kernville was named the #1 paddle sports town in America.

The Indian Wells Valley (IWV) is in the Mojave Desert. Ridgecrest, a city of 25,000 residents, is the service center for the IWV. The Navy Museum of Armament and Technology at China Lake Naval Air Weapons Center is first rate. The Maturango Museum is another Ridgecrest attraction. The Trona Pinnacles National Natural Landmark is twenty miles east of Ridgecrest, just off Hwy. 178. The community of Randsburg, to the south of Ridgecrest, is a living, desert mining ghost town. The Country Feed Barn in Inyokern is not to be missed. This repository of Western Americana can’t be explained. Just go inside and find out.

To prepare for the NABA 08 Biennial Members’ Meeting in Kernville you might want to check out the web sites listed below.

COMPREHENSIVE WEB SITE (Everything! Not to be missed! Check out the web link topics!):
Kern River Valley Revitalization

AIRPORTS:
Bakersfield’s Meadows Field (BFL) Airport
Inyokern Airport
Kern Valley Airport

ATTRACTIONS INFORMATION (see also list below):
Kern County Board of Trade
Kern River Valley Chamber of Commerce
Kernville Chamber of Commerce

CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE:
Kern River Valley Chamber of Commerce
Kernville Chamber of Commerce

KERN RIVER VALLEY NATURAL HISTORY:
Audubon-California’s Kern River Preserve
Nature Alley (including bird/birding, butterfly, butterfly checklists [photo & simple], and flower/plant/tree web pages)

RESTAURANT LISTS:
Kerr River Valley Business Directory - Restaurants
Kerr River Valley Dining Guide

ATTRACTIONS/RECREATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS/SELF-GUIDED ADVENTURES:

• Ancient Creosote Rings (viewed from junction of Hwy. 14 and Hwy. 178)
• Antiques/Art Galleries (Bakersfield, Inyokern, Kern River Valley, Ridgecrest)
• Bald Mountain Lookout (9400’) & Bald Mountain Botanical Area – off Sherman Pass Road in the Sequoia National Forest
• Basque Restaurants (7) in Bakersfield: Benji’s French Basque, Chateau Basque, Maitia’s Basque Café, Narducci's, Noriega Hotel, Pyrenees Café, Wool Growers (French Basque)
• Black Gold Oil Museum at Kern County Museum - Bakersfield (world class)
• Birding (world class - 200 nesting species recorded including Sooty Grouse, Mountain Quail, 9 nesting owl species, Black Swift, hummingbirds,Red-breasted Sapsucker, Williamson’s Sapsucker, Nuttall’ Woodpecker, White-headed Woodepecker, Vermilion Flycatcher, Brown- crested Flycatcher, Plumbeous Vireo, Oak Titmouse, Le Conte’s Thrasher, Hermit Warbler, 15 nesting small sparrow species, Tricolored Blackbird, Scott’s Oriole, and Lawrence’s Goldfinch)
  
• Bright Star Wilderness (9,000 acres) – accessed off Piute Mountain Road
• Butterflying (competes for the very tops in California w. 170+ species recorded including Clodius Parnassian, Gray Marble, ‘Harford’s’ Sulphur, Great Copper, Gorgon Copper, Golden Hairstreak, Gold-Hunter’s Hairstreak, Mountain Mahogany Hairstreak, ‘Bernardino’ Square- spotted Blue, San Emigdio Blue, Lupine Blue, Veined Blue, Pacific Fritillary, Lorquin’s Admiral, Propertius Duskywing, Alkali Skipper, Lindsey’s Skipper, Rural Skipper, and Umber Skipper)
• California Living Museum, Alfred Harrell Hwy. in Bakersfield
• Camping - ubiquitous
• Canebrake Ecological Reserve (6900 acres) – California Department of Fish & Game … Universal Access Trail accessed off Hwy. 178, 0.7 miles east of Milepost 66.00
• Chimney Peak National Backcountry Byway – starts at Hwy. 178 Milepost 70.50
• Chimney Peak Wilderness (13,000 acres)
• Death Valley National Park
• Dome Land Wilderness (135,000 acres)
• Dome Rock – Sequoia National Forest
• Fishing (Blue Ribbon trout fishery, catch & release, flyfishing, lake, river, wilderness)
• Giant Sequoia National Monument (327,769 acres including Trail of 100 Giants) – 20 mi. n. of Kernville
• Globally Important Bird Areas (Sequoia National Forest, Sierran Meadows, South Fork Valley)
• Gold Panning
• Golden Trout Wilderness (300,000+ acres)
• Golfing in Bakersfield, China Lake, Kern River Valley
• Hiking (world class)
• Horseback Riding – Kern River Valley Trail Rides
• Indian Wells Brewing Company – off Hwy. 14 northwest of Inyokern
• Isabella Reservoir
• Kelso Creek Sanctuary (156 acres) – Audubon California sanctuary on Kelso Valley Rd. 15 miles south of Hwy. 178
• Kern River Brewing Company in Kernville
• Kern River Canyon (Lower and Upper) – above and below Isabella Reservoir
• Kern River Fish Hatchery & Museum – Sierra Way two miles north of Kernville
• Kern River Preserve (2894 acres) – Audubon California sanctuary at Hwy. 178 Milepost 57.00
• Kern River Troutfitters & Fly-Fishing Guide Service in Kernville
• Kern Valley Museum (Edison, mining, movies, Native American, pioneer, ranching)
• Kernville (Western Town)
• Kiavah Wilderness (90,000 acres)
• Lake Kayaking – guided trips from Kernville
• Little Kern Golden Trout (California State Fish)
• Marinas (Isabella Reservoir)
• Mojave Desert
• Mountain Biking (world class) – guided trips and/or rentals from Kernville
• National Wild & Scenic North Fork Kern River
• National Wild & Scenic South Fork Kern River
• Needles Lookout in Sequoia National Forest – near the north end of the Western Divide Highway
• Nuui Cunni Native American Cultural Center – off Hwy. 155 at French Gulch, Isabella Reservoir
• Owen’s Peak Wilderness (80,000 acres) – accessed via the Pacific Crest Trail at Walker Pass
• Pacific Crest Trail (Mexico to Canada) – crosses Hwy. 178 at Walker Pass
• Pack Stations (guided horseback into the backcountry)
• Randsburg (living ghost/mining town) – 1 mile off US 395 near KernCounty/San Bernardino County line
• Red Rock Canyon State Park (20,000 acres) – Hwy. 14 passes through it north of Mojave
• Rich Pelletreau’s Wildlife Art Gallery & Studio, Wofford Heights
• Road Biking
• Rock Climbing (world class) – guided climbing from Kernville (Mountain & River Adventures)
• Sacatar Trail Wilderness (55,000 acres)
• Sailing – Isabella Reservoir
• Sequoia National Forest (1.2 million acres and a Globally Important Bird Area)
• South Fork Wildlife Area (1200 acres) – accessed off Hwy. 178 and Sierra Way in Weldon
• South Sierra Wilderness (65,000 acres) – accessed via the Pacific Crest Trail at Kennedy Meadows
• Stargazing
• Trail of 100 Giants in the Giant Sequoia National Monument – 33 miles north from Kernville
• Trona Pinnacles National Natural Landmark – off Hwy. 178 20 miles east of Ridgecrest
• U. S. Naval Museum of Armament & Technology at China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station, Ridgecrest
• Walker’s Pass Joshua Tree Woodland – along Hwy. 178 on both east and west sides of Walker Pass
• Water Skiing – Isabella Reservoir
• Waterfalls – South Creek Falls 20+ miles north of Kernville in the Giant Sequoia National Forest
• Western Divide Highway (including the Trail of 100 Giants) in the Giant Sequoia National Monument
• Western Heritage (cowboys, mining, ranching, rodeo) in the Kern River Valley
• Whitewater Kayaking (world class) – Kern River Valley outfitters offer classes and trips
• Whitewater Rafting (world class) – numerous outfitters in the Kern River Valley offer trips
• Wildflowers
• Windsurfing (California’s Best) on Isabella Reservoir