Tehachapi, CA

This is one of the windiest places in the world, an excellent location for wind farms, and Tehachapi Pass is the site of the world’s largest.  I don't know how wind farm size is determined, whether it’s the amount of energy produced or the number of windmills.  Anyway, there are about 5000 windmills in the Pass and more under way.  The first windmills erected here 30 years ago were 45' high; .  Wind power technology has evolved constantly in the interim, each generation of windmills getting larger and more efficient.  The newest ones are on 265' towers, have 143' blades and have a sweep area of nearly 1.5 acres. 

We’re camped at a small private RV park a couple miles southeast of Tehachapi, beside the local airport at 4200’ elevation.  From this vantage point you get a much better idea of the wind farm’s tremendous scope than you do when driving over the Pass on highway 58 – which I’ve done several times, each time thinking wow, that’s a lot of windmills, must be 3-400 of ‘em.  I had no idea there were 5,000!   

Our sunset last night.  'Say goodnight, Dick.'

This is our last night on the road.  We’d planned to extend our summer adventure several more days, hiding out in a cool, high-altitude AZ location while the high LHC temps eased off a bit.  But, a couple days ago we decided we’d had enough road time and were ready for the roominess and convenience of home – and Papa Murphy’s and Netflix and daily mail delivery and full size bathrooms and, and, and.