The California canyons hold many secrets, some within oneself and some on the roads themselves. A certain kind of spirit hangs around the canyons late at night, and you never know when you’ll meet a kindred one during your normal driving exercise. This random night in 2018 was the time I met someone pretty cool by chance.
March 29, 2021 Car Autance Feature Photo Details
- Car(s): 2009 Honda Civic Si (mine), AE88 (U.S. Spec don’t shoot me) Toyota Corolla GT-S a.k.a AE86
- Location: Godde Hill Road, Palmdale, CA
- Photog: Chris Rosales (IG + Twit @Chrishasacamera)
- Camera: Canon 5D Mark III w/ Sigma 35mm f/1.4 ART
I have my favorite local loop that tests every single one of my cars on a regular basis. The local Sierra Pelona mountains are certainly the most spooky canyons SoCal has to offer, where I’ve had many a strange 2 a.m. experience. Something about how “in the boonies” it is, and the deep, bloody history of the canyons before there were roads, gives me mild heebeejeebies if I think about it. Luckily, I’m focused on mobbing most of the time.
Sometimes you encounter a car on the road that is damn cool and you want to chat with the owner a bit about it. I was coming home on the last leg of one of many canyon journeys I’ve had with my old Civic Si, and I caught up to an AE86, which is automatic “hell yes” from me. I stuck behind him for a minute, and he showed some skill. Most importantly, he stayed on his side of the road.
When he signaled to pull over, we introduced ourselves and bullshitted for a few hours. I managed to snap a few frames of the moment, and enjoy some good conversation with a fellow canyon lunatic. Good times.
As big as we could get it:
