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{{Short description|Geographic area of southern California}}
The High Desert refers to a region located mostly in [[Southern California]]'s [[San Bernardino County]], in the United States. It makes up the northern portion of the vast desert region of Southern California, with the [[Low Desert]] making up the southern portion.
[[File:High Desert Summer Sunset.jpg|thumb|right|The High Desert at sunset in [[Johnson Valley, California|Johnson Valley]], along [[California State Route 247]]]]


The '''High Desert''' is a [[vernacular region]] with non-discrete boundaries covering areas of the western [[Mojave Desert]] in [[Southern California]]. The region encompasses various [[terrain]] with [[elevation]]s generally between {{cvt|2000|and|4000|ft}} [[height above mean sea level|above sea level]], and is located just north of the [[San Gabriel Mountains|San Gabriel]], [[San Bernardino Mountains|San Bernardino]], and [[Little San Bernardino Mountains]].
Depending on how the boundaries of the [[Mojave Desert]] and the [[Sonoran Desert]] are drawn, the High Desert is either defined as including the entire Mojave Desert (using a smaller geographic designation for the Mojave Desert), or as including the northern portion of the Mojave Desert (using a larger geographic designation for the Mojave Desert which encroaches onto area some consider to be part of the Sonoran Desert).


The term "High Desert" is commonly used by local news media,<ref>[http://www.keyc.tv/story/19529832/octomom-and-14-kids-on-move-to-calif-high-desert KEYC] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415040845/http://www.keyc.tv/story/19529832/octomom-and-14-kids-on-move-to-calif-high-desert |date=2015-04-15 }}</ref> especially in weather forecasts, because of the high desert's unique and moderate weather patterns compared to its low desert neighbors. The term "High Desert" serves to differentiate it from southern California's [[Low Desert]], which is defined by the differences in elevation, climate, animal life, and vegetation native to these regions. For instance, [[Palm Springs, California|Palm Springs]], at {{convert|500|ft}} above sea level, is considered "Low Desert"; in contrast, [[Landers, California|Landers]] at {{convert|3100|ft}} above sea level, is considered "High Desert".
The loosely defined region encompasses most of San Bernardino County, northestern [[Los Angeles County]], and eastern [[Kern County]]. A somewhat more broadly defined boundary would also include the southern portion of [[Inyo County]] to the north of San Bernardino County, as well as parts of northern Riverside County to the south of San Bernardino County.


The High Desert, along with the "[[Mojave River]] Valley" and the [[Victor Valley]], is mostly used to describe the area centered around [[Victorville, California|Victorville]]. The region extends as far west as [[Lancaster, California|Lancaster]], as far northwest as [[Palmdale, California|Palmdale]], and north to the [[Barstow, California|Barstow]] desert.<ref name="LAT 20180210">{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-high-desert-freeway-20180210-htmlstory.html|title=L.A. County set to build its first new freeway in 25 years, despite many misgivings|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|first=Louis |last=Sahagun|date=February 10, 2018|access-date=10 February 2018}}</ref> "High Desert" has also been incorporated into the names of businesses and organizations in these areas.<ref>[http://www.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=t504 High Desert Mavericks Baseball]</ref><ref>[http://california.hometownlocator.com/schools/profiles,n,high%20desert%20academy%20of%20applied%20arts%20and%20sciences,z,92394,t,pb,i,1013981.cfm High Desert Academy of Applied Arts.]</ref> The term "High Desert" is also erroneously used to refer to the communities north and west of [[Joshua Tree National Park]]—[[Twentynine Palms, California|Twentynine Palms]] and the [[Morongo Basin]] ([[Yucca Valley]]), which are actually in an area called the Hi-Desert.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haydon |first=Robert |date=2023-12-30 |title=High Desert or Hi Desert? |url=https://z1077fm.com/high-desert-or-hi-desert/ |access-date=2024-11-16 |website=Z107.7 FM Joshua Tree |language=en-US}}</ref> These communities are at a higher elevation than the [[Low Desert]] that encompasses the [[Coachella Valley]] and [[Imperial Valley]] in far southern California.
The name of the region comes from both its more northern latitude, in contrast with the more southerly Low Desert, as well as its relatively higher elevations compared with the Low Desert (much of which is below sea level).


The area was even [[High Desert County, California|proposed to become a new county]] due to cultural, economic and geographic differences relative to the rest of the more urban region.<ref name=proposal1998>{{cite news |work=Daily News |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/PLAN+MAPPED+OUT+FOR+NEW+COUNTY%3B+HIGH+DESERT+AREA+WOULD+CONTAIN+1...-a083811643 |title=Plan Mapped Out for New County; High Desert Area Would Contain 1 Million People |author=Charles F. Bostwick |access-date=2023-10-23 |archive-date=2019-04-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411172619/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/PLAN+MAPPED+OUT+FOR+NEW+COUNTY%3b+HIGH+DESERT+AREA+WOULD+CONTAIN+1...-a083811643 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=goforit>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/82681779/ |date=February 20, 1998 |publisher=[[The San Bernardino County Sun]] |page=4 |title=If a new county is feasible, go for it, desert dwellers say }}</ref><ref name = Wilson>{{cite news |url=http://www.santaclarita.com/blog/view_month.php?id=1&month=2013-04 |date=April 26, 2013 |title=Save us Carl Boyer! SCV getting screwed by LA County again |author=Jeff Wilson}}</ref>
Though very sparsely populated, small communities dot the region, especially along [[Interstate Highway 15]], [[Interstate Highway 40]], and [[US Highway 395]], with towns like [[Baker, California|Baker]] having an economy that exists almost entirely to provide service for highway travelers, especially those traveling to or from Las Vegas and Southern California's major population centers.


==Geography==
Two such communities, [[Victorville, California|Victorville]] and [[Barstow, California|Barstow]], have transformed from service stops along Interstate 15 to full-fledged cities that are home to retirees and long-distance commuters who work in the urban portion of San Bernadino County, Riverside County, and elsewhere on the other side of the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains that separate the High Desert from urban Southern California. Victorville and Barstow now boast a population of about 125,000 people.
[[File:Pale Horizon.jpg|thumb|left|Old Woman Springs Ridge in the high desert, [[Johnson Valley, California|Johnson Valley]], California]]
Depending on how the boundaries of the Mojave and the Colorado Desert region are defined, the High Desert either includes the entire California portion of the [[Mojave Desert]] (using a smaller geographic designation than its [[ecoregion]]) or the northern portion of the California desert (using a larger geographic designation including the [[ecotope]] area of the lower and adjacent [[Sonoran Desert]]).


The name of the region comes from its higher elevations and more northern latitude with associated climate and [[plant community|plant communities]] distinct from the [[Low Desert]], which includes the [[Colorado Desert]] and the below-sea-level [[Salton Sea]]. The High Desert is typically windier than the Low Desert, and it averages 12 to 20 °F cooler in both the winter and summer seasons.
The High Desert is often featured in American movies and television. Some notable films include [[1987]]'s [[Bagdad Cafe]] and [[2000]]'s [[Erin Brockovich (film)]], which centered around a manmade environmental disaster in the town of [[Hinkley, California|Hinkley]], about seven miles west of Barstow.

==Regions==
The High Desert is often divided into the following regions, moving west to east:
*The [[Los Angeles County, California|Los Angeles County]] portion, containing the [[Antelope Valley]], part of the [[Palmdale, California|Palmdale]]–[[Lancaster, California|Lancaster]] Urbanized Area, and in the [[Los Angeles metropolitan area]]. The Urbanized Area is home to 353,619 people.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://censusreporter.org/profiles/40000US47611-lancaster-palmdale-ca-urbanized-area/ | title=Census profile: Lancaster--Palmdale, CA Urbanized Area }}</ref>
*The [[San Bernardino County, California|San Bernardino County]] portion, containing the [[Victor Valley]] and [[Barstow, California|Barstow]], is the most populous region of the High Desert with an estimated 2015 population of over 385,960 residents.<ref>https://www.cityofhesperia.us/DocumentCenter/View/13786/HD-Workforce-Report-April-2016?bidId=#:~:text=These%20communities%E2%80%94Adelanto%2C%20Apple%20Valley,average%20household%20income%20of%20%2458%2C495. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220218200913/https://www.cityofhesperia.us/DocumentCenter/View/13786/HD-Workforce-Report-April-2016?bidId=#:~:text=These%20communities%E2%80%94Adelanto%2C%20Apple%20Valley,average%20household%20income%20of%20%2458%2C495 |date=2022-02-18 }}</ref> Major population center in area includes [[Victorville]], [[Hesperia, California|Hesperia]], [[Apple Valley, California|Apple Valley]], [[Adelanto]], and [[Oak Hills, San Bernardino County, California|Oak Hills]]. This region is sometimes considered part of the [[Inland Empire]] area of [[Southern California]].
*Further east lies the [[Lucerne Valley, California|Lucerne Valley]] and the [[Morongo Basin]], where [[Yucca Valley]] and the [[Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms|Twentynine Palms Marine Base]] are located. All these regions are all considered to be part of [[Greater Los Angeles]].

San Bernardino County's portion of the High Desert region contains the most land mass of the four involved counties, making up approximately 70% of the total county's area.

[[File:Burnt Horizon.jpg|thumb|right|Just after [[sunset]], [[Landers, California]]]]

Other parts of the greater physical region known as the "High Desert" include:
*The San Bernardino County northeastern reaches of the High Desert, where the [[Fort Irwin National Training Center]] and the [[Searles Valley, California|Searles Valley]] are located, and the far eastern edge of the [[California|state]] where places like [[Needles, California|Needles]] and [[Earp, California|Earp]] are located along the [[Colorado River]].
*The [[Kern County, California|Kern County]] portion, containing part of two valleys, with the southeastern part in the Antelope Valley, including [[Rosamond, California|Rosamond]], [[California City, California|California City]], [[Boron, California|Boron]], [[Edwards Air Force Base]], and [[Mojave, California|Mojave]], which are all a part of the Palmdale–Lancaster Urbanized Area, and the northeastern part being in the [[Indian Wells Valley]], including the communities of [[Inyokern, California|Inyokern]] and [[Ridgecrest, California|Ridgecrest]].
*The [[Inyo County, California|Inyo County]] portion, north of Kern County and containing the northern end of the Indian Wells Valley, [[Panamint Valley]], and [[Saline Valley, California|Saline Valley]]. This is the most sparsely populated area of the High Desert; its major communities are [[Lone Pine, California|Lone Pine]] in the southern [[Owens Valley]] and [[Bishop, California|Bishop]] in the northern.

==Cities and communities==
[[File:Sunset over the Mojave in January.jpg|thumb|left|Sunset over the Mojave]]
The major metropolitan centers in the region are primarily centered on the cities of [[Lancaster, California|Lancaster]] and [[Victorville, California|Victorville]]. Lancaster, the largest city in the High Desert, is located in the [[Antelope Valley]] next to [[Palmdale, California|Palmdale]] and anchors the area's Los Angeles County region with a [[List of California urban areas|metro area]] population of just over 500,000. The [[Victor Valley]] area, which includes cities and communities such as Victorville, Hesperia, Adelanto, Apple Valley, and [[Lucerne Valley, California|Lucerne Valley]], boasts a population around 385,000.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sanbag.ca.gov/planning/subr_corridor_vville.html |title=SANBAG Sub-Regional Corridor Studies |publisher=Sanbag.ca.gov |date=2010-04-14 |access-date=2012-11-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110220015631/http://www.sanbag.ca.gov/planning/subr_corridor_vville.html |archive-date=2011-02-20 }}</ref> The Barstow area, to the northeast of the Victor Valley, and the Morongo Basin near [[Joshua Tree National Park]] both have populations of around 60,000.

===List of cities, towns, and census-designated places===

:''Incorporated places are listed in '''bold'''. This list includes all places in the broadest definition of "High Desert". Population figures are most recent information available from the US Census Bureau.''

{{col-start}}
{{col-break}}
*[[Acton, California|Acton]] (7,596)
*[[Adelanto, California|'''Adelanto''']] (34,160)
*[[Agua Dulce, California|Agua Dulce]] (3,342)
*[[Antelope Acres, California|Antelope Acres]] (2,800)
*[[Apple Valley, California|'''Apple Valley''']] (73,508)
*[[Barstow, California|'''Barstow''']] (23,972)
*[[Bishop, California|'''Bishop''']] (3,746)
*[[Boron, California|Boron]] (2,253)
*[[Calico, San Bernardino County, California|Calico]] (12)
*[[California City, California|'''California City''']] (14,217)
*[[Cima, California|Cima]] (10)
*[[Daggett, California|Daggett]] (200)
*[[Del Sur, California|Del Sur]] (1,750)
*[[Edwards, California|Edwards]] (2,063)
*[[El Mirage, California|El Mirage]] (unknown)
*[[Elizabeth Lake, California|Elizabeth Lake]] (1,756)
*[[Essex, San Bernardino County, California|Essex]] (89)
*[[Fort Irwin National Training Center|Fort Irwin]] (8,845)
*[[Goffs, California|Goffs]] (23)
*[[Halloran Springs, California|Halloran Springs]] (18)
*[[Helendale, California|Helendale]] (4,936)
*[[Hesperia, California|'''Hesperia''']] (95,274)
*[[Hinkley, California|Hinkley]] (1,915)
*[[Hi Vista, California|Hi Vista]] (3,003)
*[[Inyokern, California|Inyokern]] (1,099)
{{col-break}}
*[[Johnson Valley, California|Johnson Valley]] (2,101)
*[[Joshua Tree, California|Joshua Tree]] (7,414)
*[[Kelso, California|Kelso]] (0)
*[[Lake Hughes, California|Lake Hughes]] (649)
*[[Lake Los Angeles, California|Lake Los Angeles]] (12,328)
*[[Lancaster, California|'''Lancaster''']] (159,053)
*[[Landers, California|Landers]] (2,632)
*[[Lenwood, California|Lenwood]] (3,543)
*[[Leona Valley, California|Leona Valley]] (1,607)
*[[Littlerock, California|Littlerock]] (1,377)
*[[Llano, California|Llano]] (1,201)
*[[Lone Pine, California|Lone Pine]] (2,035)
*[[Lucerne Valley, California|Lucerne Valley]] (5,811)
*[[Ludlow, California|Ludlow]] (10)
*[[Mojave, California|Mojave]] (4,238)
*[[Mountain Pass, California|Mountain Pass]] (8)
*[[Mountain View Acres, California|Mountain View Acres]] (3,130)
*[[Nebo Center, California|Nebo Center]] (1,174)
*[[Needles, California|'''Needles''']] (4,982)
*[[Neenach, California|Neenach]] (800)
*[[Newberry Springs, California|Newberry Springs]] (1,280)
*[[Nipton, California|Nipton]] (28)
*[[North Edwards, California|North Edwards]] (1,058)
*[[Oak Hills, San Bernardino County, California|Oak Hills]] (8,879)
*[[Oro Grande, California|Oro Grande]] (974)
{{col-break}}
*[[Palmdale, California|'''Palmdale''']] (156,667)
*[[Pearblossom, California|Pearblossom]] (2,435)
*[[Phelan, California|Phelan]] (14,304)
*[[Piñon Hills, California|Piñon Hills]] (7,272)
*[[Pioneertown, California|Pioneertown]] (350)
*[[Quartz Hill, California|Quartz Hill]] (10,912)
*[[Ragtown, California|Ragtown]] (0)
*[[Randsburg, California|Randsburg]] (69)
*[[Ridgecrest, California|'''Ridgecrest''']] (28,940)
*[[Rosamond, California|Rosamond]] (18,150)
*[[Siberia, California|Siberia]] (0)
*[[Spring Valley Lake, California|Spring Valley Lake]] (8,220)
*[[Sunfair, California|Sunfair]] (288)
*[[Sunfair Heights, California|Sunfair Heights]] (149)
*[[Sun Village, California|Sun Village]] (11,565)
*[[Three Points, California|Three Points]] (200)
*[[Trona, San Bernardino County, California|Trona]] (2,742)
*[[Twentynine Palms, California|'''Twentynine Palms''']] (26,418)
*[[Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms|Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Base]] (8,413)
*[[Valyermo, California|Valyermo]] (450)
*[[Victorville, California|'''Victorville''']] (122,312)
*[[Vidal Junction, California|Vidal Junction]] (17)
*[[Yermo, California|Yermo]] (4,200)
*[[Yucca Valley, California|'''Yucca Valley''']] (21,726)
{{col-end}}

==Major highways==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}
*[[File:California 2.svg|20px]] [[California State Route 2|State Route 2]] / [[Angeles Crest Highway]]
*[[File:California 14.svg|20px]] [[California State Route 14|State Route 14]] / [[Antelope Valley Freeway]]
*[[File:I-15 (CA).svg|20px]] [[Interstate 15 (California)|Interstate 15]]
*[[File:California 18.svg|20px]] [[California State Route 18|State Route 18]]
*[[File:I-40 (CA).svg|20px]] [[Interstate 40 (California)|Interstate 40]]
*[[File:California 58.svg|20px]] [[California State Route 58|State Route 58 / Tehachapi Freeway]]
*[[File:California 62.svg|20px]] [[California State Route 62|State Route 62]]
*[[File:US 95 (1961 cutout).svg|20px]] [[U.S. Route 95 in California|U.S. Route 95]]
*[[File:California 127.svg|25px]] [[California State Route 127|State Route 127]]
{{col-break}}
*[[File:California 136.svg|25px]] [[California State Route 136|State Route 136]]
*[[File:California 138.svg|25px]] [[California State Route 138|State Route 138]] / [[Pearblossom Highway]]
*[[File:California 178.svg|25px]] [[California State Route 178|State Route 178]]
*[[File:California 190.svg|25px]] [[California State Route 190|State Route 190]]
*[[File:California 247.svg|25px]] [[California State Route 247|State Route 247]]
*[[File:US 395 (CA).svg|25px]] [[U.S. Route 395 (California)|U.S. Route 395]]
{{col-end}}

==In the arts==

===Literature===

*[[Louis L'Amour]]'s Western novel ''The Lonesome Gods'' uses features of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts in its narrative.
*[[James Spooner]]'s 2022 graphic memoir ''The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere.'' depicts the author's experiences as a Black teenager in the punk rock scene of Apple Valley.

===Motion pictures===
;Popular filming sites
*The [[Alabama Hills]] and [[Red Rock Canyon State Park (California)|Red Rock Canyon]] have been [[filming location]]s for numerous [[Western (genre)|Westerns]].
*Boomtowns that prospered during [[U.S. Route 66|Route 66]] and railroad travel in the early 20th century include [[Amboy, California|Amboy]], [[Cima, California|Cima]] and [[Ludlow, California|Ludlow]], and are also used in principal photography and location shots.
*[[Southern California Logistics Airport]] ([[George Air Force Base]], decommissioned in 1992) is used often for military dramas and action films.
;Exemplary projects
*''[[Stagecoach (1939 film)|Stagecoach]]'' (1939), [[Lucerne Valley]]
*''[[The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (film)|The Treasure of the Sierra Madre]]'' (1948), [[Red Rock Canyon State Park (California)]]−
*''[[Westworld (film)|Westworld]]'' (1973), Red Rock Canyon State Park
*''[[Bagdad Cafe]]'' (1987), Newberry Springs
*''[[Jurassic Park (film)|Jurassic Park]]'' (1993), Red Rock Canyon State Park
*''[[Casino (1995 film)|Casino]]'' (1995), Palmdale
*''[[Contact (1997 American film)|Contact]]'' (1997), Adelanto<ref name="Contact_Movie">{{cite web |title=Contact |url=https://www.movie-locations.com/movies/c/Contact.php |website=Movie-Locations |access-date=8 July 2019 |date=1997}}</ref>
*''[[Face/Off]]'' (1997), Victorville
*''[[Jarhead (film)|Jarhead]]'' (2005), Victorville
*''[[Valkyrie (film)|Valkyrie]]'' (2008), Victorville
;Films using High Desert as a subject of the narrative
*''[[Erin Brockovich (film)|Erin Brockovich]]'' (2000), centered on the [[PG&E]] environmental disaster in the town of [[Hinkley, California|Hinkley]] west of [[Barstow, California|Barstow]].
*''[[The Right Stuff (film)|The Right Stuff]]'' (1983), based on the 1979 non-fiction book by [[Tom Wolfe]] about the pilots engaged in U.S. postwar research with experimental rocket-powered, high-speed aircraft at [[Edwards Air Force Base]] as well as documenting the stories of the first Project Mercury astronauts selected for the NASA space program.
*''[[Space Cowboys]]'' (2000), one of many examples that feature [[Edwards Air Force Base]] in the 1940s used in experimental test flights and for shuttle landings with the NASA Space Program.

==See also==
*[[Victorville Army Airfield auxiliary fields]]
*[[High Desert County, California]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage|California Desert}}
*[http://highdesertbroadcasting.com/ High Desert Broadcasting]
*[http://www.highdesertcommunity.com/ High Desert Edge Webcast]
*[http://www.highdesert.com/ High Desert Information] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314180858/http://www.highdesert.com/ |date=2017-03-14 }}
*[http://www.hidesertnewsonline.com/ High Desert News] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170527130641/http://www.hidesertnewsonline.com/ |date=2017-05-27 }}
{{Clear}}

{{Inland Empire}}

{{Coord|34.8|-117.6|region:US-CA_type:landmark_dim:200km|display=title}}

[[Category:Deserts of California]]
[[Category:Mojave Desert|*]]
[[Category:Regions of California]]
[[Category:Geography of San Bernardino County, California]]
[[Category:Geography of Riverside County, California]]
[[Category:Geography of Southern California]]
[[Category:Southern California]]

Latest revision as of 18:11, 23 November 2024

The High Desert at sunset in Johnson Valley, along California State Route 247

The High Desert is a vernacular region with non-discrete boundaries covering areas of the western Mojave Desert in Southern California. The region encompasses various terrain with elevations generally between 2,000 and 4,000 ft (610 and 1,220 m) above sea level, and is located just north of the San Gabriel, San Bernardino, and Little San Bernardino Mountains.

The term "High Desert" is commonly used by local news media,[1] especially in weather forecasts, because of the high desert's unique and moderate weather patterns compared to its low desert neighbors. The term "High Desert" serves to differentiate it from southern California's Low Desert, which is defined by the differences in elevation, climate, animal life, and vegetation native to these regions. For instance, Palm Springs, at 500 feet (150 m) above sea level, is considered "Low Desert"; in contrast, Landers at 3,100 feet (940 m) above sea level, is considered "High Desert".

The High Desert, along with the "Mojave River Valley" and the Victor Valley, is mostly used to describe the area centered around Victorville. The region extends as far west as Lancaster, as far northwest as Palmdale, and north to the Barstow desert.[2] "High Desert" has also been incorporated into the names of businesses and organizations in these areas.[3][4] The term "High Desert" is also erroneously used to refer to the communities north and west of Joshua Tree National Park—Twentynine Palms and the Morongo Basin (Yucca Valley), which are actually in an area called the Hi-Desert.[5] These communities are at a higher elevation than the Low Desert that encompasses the Coachella Valley and Imperial Valley in far southern California.

The area was even proposed to become a new county due to cultural, economic and geographic differences relative to the rest of the more urban region.[6][7][8]

Geography

[edit]
Old Woman Springs Ridge in the high desert, Johnson Valley, California

Depending on how the boundaries of the Mojave and the Colorado Desert region are defined, the High Desert either includes the entire California portion of the Mojave Desert (using a smaller geographic designation than its ecoregion) or the northern portion of the California desert (using a larger geographic designation including the ecotope area of the lower and adjacent Sonoran Desert).

The name of the region comes from its higher elevations and more northern latitude with associated climate and plant communities distinct from the Low Desert, which includes the Colorado Desert and the below-sea-level Salton Sea. The High Desert is typically windier than the Low Desert, and it averages 12 to 20 °F cooler in both the winter and summer seasons.

Regions

[edit]

The High Desert is often divided into the following regions, moving west to east:

San Bernardino County's portion of the High Desert region contains the most land mass of the four involved counties, making up approximately 70% of the total county's area.

Just after sunset, Landers, California

Other parts of the greater physical region known as the "High Desert" include:

Cities and communities

[edit]
Sunset over the Mojave

The major metropolitan centers in the region are primarily centered on the cities of Lancaster and Victorville. Lancaster, the largest city in the High Desert, is located in the Antelope Valley next to Palmdale and anchors the area's Los Angeles County region with a metro area population of just over 500,000. The Victor Valley area, which includes cities and communities such as Victorville, Hesperia, Adelanto, Apple Valley, and Lucerne Valley, boasts a population around 385,000.[11] The Barstow area, to the northeast of the Victor Valley, and the Morongo Basin near Joshua Tree National Park both have populations of around 60,000.

List of cities, towns, and census-designated places

[edit]
Incorporated places are listed in bold. This list includes all places in the broadest definition of "High Desert". Population figures are most recent information available from the US Census Bureau.

Major highways

[edit]

In the arts

[edit]

Literature

[edit]
  • Louis L'Amour's Western novel The Lonesome Gods uses features of the Mojave and Colorado Deserts in its narrative.
  • James Spooner's 2022 graphic memoir The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere. depicts the author's experiences as a Black teenager in the punk rock scene of Apple Valley.

Motion pictures

[edit]
Popular filming sites
Exemplary projects
Films using High Desert as a subject of the narrative
  • Erin Brockovich (2000), centered on the PG&E environmental disaster in the town of Hinkley west of Barstow.
  • The Right Stuff (1983), based on the 1979 non-fiction book by Tom Wolfe about the pilots engaged in U.S. postwar research with experimental rocket-powered, high-speed aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base as well as documenting the stories of the first Project Mercury astronauts selected for the NASA space program.
  • Space Cowboys (2000), one of many examples that feature Edwards Air Force Base in the 1940s used in experimental test flights and for shuttle landings with the NASA Space Program.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ KEYC Archived 2015-04-15 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Sahagun, Louis (February 10, 2018). "L.A. County set to build its first new freeway in 25 years, despite many misgivings". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 February 2018.
  3. ^ High Desert Mavericks Baseball
  4. ^ High Desert Academy of Applied Arts.
  5. ^ Haydon, Robert (2023-12-30). "High Desert or Hi Desert?". Z107.7 FM Joshua Tree. Retrieved 2024-11-16.
  6. ^ Charles F. Bostwick. "Plan Mapped Out for New County; High Desert Area Would Contain 1 Million People". Daily News. Archived from the original on 2019-04-11. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  7. ^ "If a new county is feasible, go for it, desert dwellers say". The San Bernardino County Sun. February 20, 1998. p. 4.
  8. ^ Jeff Wilson (April 26, 2013). "Save us Carl Boyer! SCV getting screwed by LA County again".
  9. ^ "Census profile: Lancaster--Palmdale, CA Urbanized Area".
  10. ^ https://www.cityofhesperia.us/DocumentCenter/View/13786/HD-Workforce-Report-April-2016?bidId=#:~:text=These%20communities%E2%80%94Adelanto%2C%20Apple%20Valley,average%20household%20income%20of%20%2458%2C495. Archived 2022-02-18 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ "SANBAG Sub-Regional Corridor Studies". Sanbag.ca.gov. 2010-04-14. Archived from the original on 2011-02-20. Retrieved 2012-11-07.
  12. ^ "Contact". Movie-Locations. 1997. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
[edit]
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for California Desert.

34°48′N 117°36′W / 34.8°N 117.6°W / 34.8; -117.6

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=High_Desert_(California)&oldid=1259157893"