California 31st State

California

My brother lived in Upland for a time. For some reason, when I would go to visit him, I would always miss his exit off the Interstate 10 freeway: Mountain exit (the road to Mt. Baldy). I'd drive east and about the time I passed Ontario International Airport, I would realize that I went to far and I would turn around and go back. My brother, finally exasperated with my always arriving late with the same excuse, said to me... "Just remember the abbreviation for mountain... M-T, he said touching his finger to my forehead."

Smart-alec! The reason I would always miss the exit was simple... there were TWO Mountain Avenues which ran parallel to each other. The first one, was two miles west in Claremont (it did not have an exit off the freeway because it didn't reach that far south). The second was my brother's exit. I was more familiar with the Claremont Mountain Ave., hence the confusion. I drove past the exit just yesterday and this story popped into my head so I wanted to share it! Silly me! He hasn't lived there for about 20 years and I still remember his exit!

Caption: The picturesque community of Upland, California, sits at the foot of Mr. Baldy, just minutes away from skiing and mountain recreation. Photo © Wm. Hartshorn