Tejon Pass
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The Tejon Pass, previously known as Portezuelo de Cortes, Portezuela de Castac, and Fort Tejon Pass is a mountain pass between the southwest end of the Tehachapi Mountains and northeastern San Emigdio Mountains, linking Southern California north to the Central Valley. Both the pass and the grade north of it to the Central Valley are commonly referred to as "the Grapevine". It has been traversed by major roads such as the El Camino Viejo, the Stockton – Los Angeles Road, the Ridge Route, U.S. Route 99, and now Interstate 5.
The top of the Tejon Pass on southbound Interstate 5 (2009)
Tejon Pass near Grapevine, California, in 1868
The exit to Fort Tejon, on the northward slope of the Tejon Pass just before descending into the Central Valley
A section of the 1915 Ridge Route in Lebec, California, known as "deadman's curve," was abandoned when the highway was improved over the Tejon Pass.
Tehachapi Mountains
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The Tehachapi Mountains are a mountain range in the Transverse Ranges system of California in the Western United States. The range extends for approximately 40 miles (64 km) in southern Kern County and northwestern Los Angeles County and form part of the boundary between the San Joaquin Valley and the Mojave Desert.
Tehachapi Mountains Crest peaks
Image: Wpdms shdrlfi 020l tehachapi mountains
The California mixed evergreen forest plant community in the upper Tehachapi Mountains
View of the Tehachapi Mountains from I-5 as it descends into the Central Valley