By David Lukas

It's easy to dismiss U.S. Highway 395 as a forlorn back road that merely snakes from the north side of the Los Angeles Basin through desolate deserts and dusty ranchlands to its overlooked terminus at the Canadian border. But you would be wrong. Formed in 1926, this 1,300-mile stretch of highway endures as one of America's most surprising and sublimely beautiful road trips, with so many stunning viewpoints and points of interest that you'll be hard-pressed to reach your destination.

Hubcaps in the Mojave Desert

Soon after leaving its southern junction with Interstate 15, northeast of Los Angeles, Highway 395 stumbles onto its first surprising landmark, a sea of hubcaps in the Mojave Desert town of Pearsonville. You may wonder whether this is a junkyard or a museum of Americana, but there's no doubting the parade of movie stars, films and television shows, including a Bill Cosby program and "To Tell the Truth," that have stopped by to pay tribute to this remarkable store and Lucy Pearson, the self-appointed "queen of the hubcaps."

Mt. Whitney with yellow wildflowers in foreground.
© Emily Riddell Lonely Planet Images.

Gorgeous Views on the Backside of the Sierra Nevada

From here, the next 200 miles of Highway 395 parallels the backside of the Sierra Nevada, a long spine of jagged peaks that culminates at Mt. Whitney; at 14,505 feet it's the highest point in the continental United States. If you can pull your eyes away from the towering giants overhead, you'll notice many other interesting and ironic attractions along the way, including the Crystal Geyser bottling plant located in Olancha, Calif., producing sparkling fresh spring water in the most arid wasteland you could imagine. Or, reflect on the mysterious Mono Lake on the eastern side of Yosemite National Park, an ancient lake that tempts you with its dazzling blue color but which is actually three times saltier than the ocean. Further north, learn about local history at the Nevada State Museum in Carson City, or track down a basque meal at one of the local restaurants such as the J.T. Basque Bar and Dining Room in Gardnerville, Nev.

Oregon's Rolling Vistas

The long rolling vistas along Highway 395 in Oregon seem tame compared to the stunning views found in eastern California, but look closely and you'll discover an ever-changing play of color and light that becomes a mesmerizing soundtrack to your journey north. Don't miss the sculptural line of shadows along Abert Rim, one of the longest and highest fault scarps in the world, located just north of Lakeview. Stop by the lonely cowboy town of Burns, which lies at the center of Harney County, the ninth-largest in America. Make sure you take a brief detour to the John Day Fossil Beds, a technicolor landscape with 40 million years of fossil history that make it the foremost site in North America to learn about the horses, camels, rhinoceroses and saber-toothed cats that once roamed here. Or put your feet up in Pendleton, home of the Pendleton Round-Up and the Pendleton Woolen Mills.

View of the expansive Columbia river from a high vantage point, Washington State.
© Tom Boyden Lonely Planet Images.

Washington's Farms and Floods

Eastern Washington is the site of the most massive flood recorded in earth's history and evidence is found everywhere along Highway 395 as it crosses the still-mighty Columbia River multiple times. Look for giant scars from the flood in the Esquatzel Coulee, a long slash in the landscape that the highway follows from Pasco to Connell. Where the earth hasn't been cut down by the flood, it has been built up with sediments, creating some of the most productive agricultural lands in the world. Eastern Washington is now a crazy quilt of irrigated fields nourished by the Columbia River, the longest river in the continental United States. The lovely "Lilac City" of Spokane has benefited greatly from this natural prosperity, positioning itself as a cultural and economic powerhouse in the Pacific Northwest. Not only was it the site of the 1974 World's Fair, Spokane now hosts the world's largest three-on-three basketball tournament.

After meandering among remote farms, ranches and deserts, Highway 395 makes its final dash to the Canadian border through a welcoming landscape of forested ridges and cascading rivers. Dipping down into lush valleys and small farming communities, and crossing the Columbia River one more time, Highway 395 turns north along the Kettle River and comes, finally, to the end of its amazing journey. Unless you're planning to continue on into Canada, turn back at the tiny border town of Laurier. You have just driven one of America's most interesting and scenic highways, and if you're like many other people who have become aficionados of this route, you're likely to return again one day.

Bio: David Lukas is a professional naturalist who lives just outside Yosemite National Park. He leads nature tours and writes about the plants and animals of places ranging from Borneo to Tanzania to Nova Scotia.

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