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  5. Road trippin'

Road trippin': Up the Valley on SR-43

When most people pass through the Central Valley, they're grimly motoring as fast as they can up or down Interstate 5 or State Route 99. CT News opted for a more leisurely and intriguing option: State Route 43. The (mostly) two-lane highway passes by some interesting sights (high-speed rail construction, anyone?) and at least one quietly contemplative site: Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park. Come along for a ride on the road less traveled.

Gallery

sr43-01 (Screen shot courtesy of Google Maps)
sr43-02 State Route 43, a 98-mile-long Central Valley highway, gets going northward at the junction of State Route 119, near Taft.
sr43-03 The pretty-flat roadway begins its northern journey at a roundabout with SR-119; there are several other roundabouts along the way.
sr43-04 On the southwestern corner of SR-43's junction with Interstate 5 is this raceway; up until this point SR-43 also is known as Enos Lane.
sr43-05 Most long-haul motorists take either Interstate 5 or State Route 99 to speed through the Valley; here, SR-43 bisects with I-5.
sr43-06 As Interstate 5 whizzes by below, State Route 43 continues its less-frantic way up toward Shafter and points farther north.
sr43-07 With not just a roundabout but also a bicycle lane, SR-43 shows how it has adapted to modern times here at the junction of State Route 58.
sr43-08 Farmland borders Highway 43 for much of its route; there also are dairy farms, barren patches and small-cityscapes.
sr43-09 Memorial signs are a common feature of the state highway system. So is the nearby, parallel presence of rail lines.
sr43-10 Off the east side of SR-43, the Shafter Depot Museum beckons, although it's only open Saturdays this time of year.
sr43-11 Northbound SR-43 hits roughly its one-quarter point in the town of Wasco, which is also penetrated by the east-west State Route 46.
sr43-12 At this point of the Central Valley roadway, not far from Fresno, strong evidence of high-speed-rail construction emerges.
sr43-13 Northbound SR-43 motorists need to make a right turn at this intersection in Wasco; CT News had a brain hiccup and turned left by accident.
sr43-14 After making a U-turn on State Route 46, CT News righted itself and shortly after the junction of Highways 43 and 46 resumed its northward trek.
sr43-15 There certainly are no large towns along State Route 43, although the roadway runs not too far west of Bakersfield and Fresno.
sr43-16 As described by Wikipedia, "Kern National Wildlife Refuge is a 11,249-acre protected area located in the southern portion of California's San Joaquin Valley."
sr43-17 Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park, although quite low-key, is arguably the most interesting tourist attraction along State Route 43.
sr43-18 This plaque explains that Allensworth in 1908 became the state's only town founded, built, governed and inhabited by African Americans.
sr43-19 A few structures at Allensworth hark back to the town's heyday, including the hotel. Within its walls, people danced to piano music.
sr43-20 North of Allensworth, also on the roadway's western side, is more evidence of high-speed-rail construction.
sr43-21 Highway 43's intersection with State Route 137 features another fairly new roundabout. SR-137 heads northeast toward Tulare.
sr43-22 Corcoran, founded 108 years ago and perhaps best known for hosting a state prison, is off to the west of State Route 43.
sr43-23 Motorists can exit off State Route 43 here to head eastward toward Visalia. Westward, SR-198 goes to Hanford.
sr43-24 The Kings River has its mighty moments at various places in many years, but this past September, under SR-43, it was bone dry.
sr43-25 State Route 43's northernmost point is in Selma, where it intersects with the much-more-traveled State Route 99.