View From the Top – Panorama Bluffs, Bakersfield, CA

Let's face it. Bakersfield to most people is not the prettiest city in the country. But, no matter where you travel, you can always find something beautiful, or at least interesting to photograph! Every year at Thanksgiving, we travel to Bakersfield where my husband, Jeff, grew up. Although I always lug my camera gear down there with me, I usually leave home without huge expectations. That is actually a very freeing feeling! Sometimes that approach results in returning home with better photos, than when you have high expectations for yourself and they don't work out. The area that I usually photograph when visiting Bakersfield is the Panorama Bluffs. It has actually been developed into a park, appropriately named Panorama Park, for walkers, dog walkers, runners and bicyclists. It's actually quite pretty. One of the really great things about this park in my opinion is that it is extremely "dog friendly." They have even installed doggie disposal stations, as well as drinking fountains that serve both humans and dogs. It's fun to watch Jeff and our dog, Cocoa, drink from it together! While we visit there, we walk daily on the Bluffs and it's amazing what we stumble upon in just a 2-mile area. During this past visit we saw probably one of the smallest dogs I've ever seen, as well as one of the largest. We saw a gal flying a string of 9 mini kites while walking her dog. We saw groups of bicyclists (see photo). Probably the most interesting thing we saw was a group of Fire Fighter recruits performing rescue training. They were trying to rescue a body (dummy) that had gone over the cliff. That is just a partial list of things we encountered on the Bluffs this time around. Bakersfield is currently one of the fastest-growing, large-population cities in the country. I'm sure when we return there again next November, there will be new photographic opportunities awaiting! Directions to Panorama Park Take Hwy 178 to Union Avenue. Head north towards Bakersfield College. Just past Columbus Ave, Union reaches a Y in the road. Veer to the right heading uphill until the road changes into Panorama Drive. Continue on Panorama until you come to the park on your left. You can park along the road, or in the parking lot.