We've traveled Highway 58 between Bakersfield and Mojave many times without getting off to go to the Tehachapi Loop Overlook. The last such passenger trip occurred on June 22, 2008 when two Amtrak passenger trains detoured through the loop due to track maintenance on route to Los Angeles. I'm a baby boomer who loves to travel. Continue on about one mile past the Loop Ranch to get a view overlooking the loop.
His enthusiasm has rubbed off on me, and as the official trip planner I felt that our first stop in this week long jaunt should be to get off the highway and (hopefully) watch a train travel the Loop. The loop is roughly 3,800 feet long and covers a 77 foot incline. We loved listening as a train made its chugging engine noise and frequent horn blasts up the mountain.
Regular passenger train service through the loop was halted in the early 1970’s.
The best known monument by the Loop marks the site as a California Historic Landmark, which was placed on an overlook right alongside Woodford-Tehachapi Road in 1953. The Tehachapi Depot Railroad Museum is at 101 West Tehachapi Boulevard in downtown Tehachapi . Note: Freight train schedules are not set, therefore there is no guarantee a train will be passing through the loop at any given time of day. However periodic track maintenance in other parts of the state requires a passenger train to detour through the loop. The passage is traversed daily by an average of 50 freight trains, making it the busiest single-track line in the United States. Tehachapi Loop, Tehachapi: See 225 reviews, articles, and 68 photos of Tehachapi Loop, ranked No.1 on Tripadvisor among 17 attractions in Tehachapi. The tour bus parked on Woodford Tehachapi Road at the Loop overlook. The Tehachapi Loop is a 0.73 miles (1.17 km) long spiral, or helix, on the Union Pacific Railroad Mojave Subdivision through Tehachapi Pass, of the Tehachapi Mountains in Kern County, south-central California. From Keene follow the sign to Tehachapi Loop. Copyright © 2020 Visit Bakersfield | All Rights Reserved Tehachapi Loop Overlook The loop allows trains to gain the elevation necessary to make it up a portion of the mountains by making the incline more gradual. The only way to make this possible was for tracks to be laid east from Bakersfield over the Tehachapi Mountains into the Mojave Desert and back to Los Angeles.
The building is a replica of the original 100-year-old depot that burned to the ground in 2008, just as it was about to open as a museum following extensive renovation. The work resulted in 18 tunnels, 10 bridges, numerous water tunnels for steam locomotives, all completed in just two years, starting in 1874, said another plaque dedicated in 1998 at the Loop’s viewing site. The best place for photography is the roadside overlook. Construction of the Loop was started in 1874 and opened two years later. Off-street parking is available to view trains. The need resulted in one of the greatest engineering feats of its time, the Tehachapi Loop. The loop and adjacent area is always good for a busy show.
It's amazing to see and watch a train pull train from wagons and admire say the Californians. The line connects Bakersfield and the San Joaquin Valley to Mojave in the Mojave Desert.
The occasion brought in railroad buffs from as far away as Chicago, Ill. From Bakersfield: (45 minutes, 40 miles) Take Highway 58 West to Keene. The UP trails go west to the San Joaquin Valley towards Bakersfield or east to Mojave.
Union Pacific Railroad Tracks. Loop helps trains climb the Tehachapi Pass. The loop is an astounding sight and is well worth the trip; you will not be disappointed. It’s quiet and peaceful with very little traffic to contend with.