About 10 years back I was doing road construction, widening the lanes and bank stabilization around the turn adjacent to the powerplant that Rad mentioned. We stayed at Lake Ming which is right above Hart Lake. I was never able to catch anything while I was there. We were working 16 hour days and I simply didn't have much time or energy to try...but we did get robbed while at work one day.
I had noticed a "seedy" group of young men milling around camp, presumabely casing us out the evening before. Sure enough we came back from work the next day to realize that most of our belongings had been taken. I'm not telling you this to scare you but rather to inform you that there is a "healthy" criminal element in Bakersfield. I kick myself in the butt because I was pretty sure those guys were up to no good and I didn't do anything to protect my property. I paid the price. Keep an eye out and trust your intuition but most importantly, have fun.
Rad, since your familiar with the power plant I have to tell this quick story. When I arrived the first day on the job, I got out of my truck and heard a loud distant rumble. I looked up at the peak to the north to see several VW Bug size boulders tumbling down the 1300' drop at what seemed like 100 MPH. One of the boulders stayed pretty much in tact all the way to the bottom. Before reaching the bank it took one last bounce, launching it into the bridge that the plant uses for testing flows and accessing equipment on the other side. The metal bridge pretty much exploded into a hundred splintery pieces while the rock plunged into the river creating the biggest splash I have ever seen. This random act of erosion was one of the most spectacular things I've ever seen in my lifetime.
Richard Dennis EP Aeration rich@epaeration.com www.epaeration.com (800) 556-9251
