Palmdale: the San Andreas Fault

Highway 14 through Palmdale goes past a famous roadcut of wrinkled and warped rock layers adjacent to the San Andreas.

Finding it was a bit challenging: I had three books which mentioned it but none of them said how to view it. We found out why: there's no official trail or legal place to stand, just the freeway frontage. Right next to the frontage is a big plot of land with a For Sale sign on it. I wonder if they mention to potential buyers that that little hill you just climbed from the street to the top of the hill is the scarp of the San Andreas fault, and your car is parked on a different tectonic plate than your land would be on, and if you look across the freeway there you can see the proof. If you ask me (and I know you didn't), the city of Palmdale should annex it and build a little earth science museum there, with a seismometer. Perfect!

Driving by on 14 would be an easier way to see the roadcut, but of course taking pictures is difficult while driving.

But it really is an amazing roadcut and I'm glad we took the time to find it.
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Southern California Geology Trips
The San Andreas Fault
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