Tehachapi Pass

Tehachapi Pass
Tehachapi Pass
Elevation	3,793 ft (1,156 m)
Traversed by	State Route 58 Union Pacific Railroad
Location	Kern County, California, US
Range	Sierra Nevada
Coordinates	35°06′08″N 118°16′58″W

Tehachapi Pass (elevation about 4,000 feet (1,219 m)) is a mountain pass crossing the Tehachapi Mountains in Kern County, California in the United States. The route connects the San Joaquin Valley to the Mojave Desert. The Native American Kitanemuk people used the pass as a trade route before the American settlement of the region in the 1800s.

Geography

Tehachapi Pass is at the northeast end of the Tehachapi Mountains where they meet the southern Sierra Nevada range. The summit is just east of the town of Tehachapi. The pass marks the south end of the Sierras.

State Route 58 and the main line of the former Southern Pacific Railroad (now operated by the Union Pacific Railroad) run through the pass. The railroad feature known as Tehachapi Loop is about 18 miles (29 km) west of the summit.

Features

The area east and south of the pass is home to the Tehachapi Pass Wind Farm, one of California's larger wind farms. The pass is also a proposed route for the California High-Speed Rail line section between Palmdale and Bakersfield.

The Tehachapi Mountains are also crossed by Tejon Pass at the southwest end of the range.

The Tehachapi Mountains and Tehachapi Pass in 1869.

Eastern Tehachapi Pass with the Tehachapi Pass Wind Farm.