2025-11: Ft. Tejon State Park

Milestones

•  35th time camping in 35 months (SHOW ON MAP)
•  1st time camping in Kern County
• 3rd time facing a locked gate blocking my campsite (SEE 2nd)

This Camping Trip was Inspired by Huell Howser

“You’ve passed it hundreds of times, high atop the grapevine on I-5, jokingly referred to as the most famous bathroom between LA and Bakersfield.”

That’s the intro to the PBS show, “Visting … With Huell Howser”, Season 7, Episode 10: Fort Tejon, which aired on February 28, 1999. I watched that episode and have wanted to visit it ever since. When I discovered that you could go camping overnight there…. well… you know what I had to do.

Arrival – GATE CLOSED

This is getting ridiculous. This is the third time I have arrived at my campground, only to discover that the gate is closed. I got out of the care and decided to see how far away my campsite was. I had the brief thought that maybe I could haul my stuff, one arm-load at a time (it turned out that it was almost 1/2 a mile from the gate to my campsite). When I got up to the gate, I saw it was double-padlocked with a chain. However…. the chain wasn’t tight, so I slipped it around the end of the metal bar, and opened the gate. It pays to be stubborn… sometimes.

Gorgeous day. The sun was out, it was warm and the skies were cloudless.

With this month being one of the wettest November’s on record in Southern California, the grass and trees looked spectacular. There could have been snow on the surrounding peaks , but we had some warm weather the previous week. My phone said it was 43F in the morning, and I can vouch for its accuracy.

The campground has only one site, with a dozen picnic tables. You could park a dozen RV’s with 100 people comfortably. I had the whole place to myself. It was amazing.

I was wagging a pretty big tail this time camping. I brought my newly purchased Starlink and a bigger battery. I also brought my telescope. In my book, this is bordering on “glamping”!

Starlink was fantastic. I had 200Mbps download speed, I streamed videos and shared WiFi across all my devices. I feel a lot more comfortable going places where don’t have cellular service. Which does happen to me more than I like.

Military Outpost

Fort Tejon is a former United States Army outpost which was intermittently active from June 24, 1854, until September 11, 1864. It was the headquarters of the First U.S. Dragoons which became the 1st Cavalry Regiment. The fort is located in the Grapevine Canyon (La Cañada de las Uvas) between the San Emigdio Mountains and Tehachapi Mountains.

Headquarters for the First Dragoons were moved to Fort Tejon, California, in December 1856, with the various companies scattered throughout the West. For the next five years, the regiment engaged in a variety of Indian fights, seeing action at various times against the Navajos and Apaches in the Southwest and several tribes in the Northwest. On 8 January 1859, B and K Companies fought an engagement with the Mojave in the Mohave Valley and another engagement against the Paiutes on 18–19 April 1860 near present-day Yermo, California.

The fort’s mission was to suppress stock rustling and protect settlers from attacks by discontent Californios (pre-statehood residents) and Native American tribes (including the Paiute and Mojave), and to monitor the less aggressive Emigdiano living nearby.

It was a bonus to tour through the buildings. They were all reconstructions. But, the foundations were the original ones.

The park is beautiful, with the oak trees being the stars of the show.

Dinner

I bought a round grill for my solo-stove. I wrapped it in tinfoil, put my chicken-sausages and baked potato on it and cooked dinner. OMG…. It was soooo good.

It smoked quite a bit. I think it was because it wasn’t getting enough airflow. Next time, I may get rid of the tinfoil, or at least poke holes it it.

Park Ranger Encounter

After dark, I was finished with dinner, and went to the restroom. When I got out, there was a pickup truck with its high-beams on, parked next to my campsite. A Park Ranger asked me what I was doing there. I said I had a reservation. He said that this campsite was for large groups (up to 100 people). I said I knew that, and I had bought my reservation online. I showed him my confirmation, and he relaxed. I thanked him for checking on me. He told me to call 911 if I needed any help.

I guess I’m supposed to call ahead and let everyone know that I’m coming, so they will open the gate, and not be scared of me when I arrive.