2018 Map of Pentland

About this map

Midway Valley and the Maricopa Flat characterize this arid reach of the southwestern San Joaquin Valley, where the industrial infrastructure of water transport and oil extraction meets the rising slopes of the San Emigdio Mountains. The massive Governor-Edmund-G-Brown-California-Aqueduct cuts a wide arc across the plains, reflecting the 20th-century engineering required to sustain agricultural and industrial growth in the Kern County desert. Near the settlement of Pentland, a dense grid of local roads like Kerto Rd, Pentland Rd, and Ditch Rd suggests the historical footprint of oil lease development and early ranching. To the south, the terrain shifts abruptly as the flatlands give way to the rugged relief of Cienaga Canyon and the headwaters of Santiago Cr and Bitter Cr, marking a sharp transition from the valley floor to the high mountain front.