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passing the National Forest Inn, a white
clapboard structure that had a garage,
gas station, cafe and nine sleeping cab-
ins.
Mile after mile into the night, he
would soon be over the ridge. He was
now on a stretch of highway between
Martin's Garage and the Ridge Road
House, a couple of small establish-
ments above Castaic. It was here, ear-
lier in the year, that a maintenance crew
working on the road left a stretch of dirt
that had turned into mud. A fellow
A view of the serpentine-like curves of "Swede's Cut" on the Ridge Route. Teamster rounding a curve with a fully
loaded Packard truck saw a Mack truck
Reservoir Summit Cafe also offered tent cabins. The floor and and trailer load of oil-well casings. The Mack had slowed nearly
bottom half of these units were made of wood, with the upper half to a stop when the driver saw the mud. The Packard hit the Mack,
of the wall and roof constructed of canvas. A small tin garage south pushing it backwards, and the Packard nearly went over the side.
of the cafe housed a tow truck. The reservoir was on a knoll above At Castaic, the old
the cafe, and had been constructed for storing water for use when Teamster stopped to
concrete was mixed to pave the road back in 1919. stretch his legs and get a
Soon, he was going through Swede's Cut. The curve at the south cup of coffee. He was glad
end of the cut signaled the start of Serpentine Drive and a rapid that he was down off the
descent. Not long ago, a truckload ofMexican farm hands missed Ridge Route. He could
the curve and met their maker. You had to be alert to the many now relax a bit for the rest
curves and grades on the Ridge Route. of his trip into Los An-
Shifting into a lower gear, he slowed his rig in advance of the geles.
crucial tum and descent. At the bottom he drove another two miles,

A stretch of dirt left by a maintenance crew on the highway between Martin's and the Ridge Road Garage turned into mud and disaster for a Mack loaded with oil-
well casings and a Packard, loaded with eight tons of olives. The driver of the Packard (inset) can smile at his close call.

44 September/October 2004 www.aths.org / WHEELS OF TIME