Skip to main content

California State Route 371

By
This past October I drove the entirety of California State Route 371 from CA 79 northeast to CA 74.


CA 371 is a 21 mile east/west State Highway which serves as a connector between CA 79 and CA 74.  CA 371 is entirely located within Riverside County.



Part 1; the history of California State Route 371

The current alignment that is now CA 371 was added to the State Highway System in 1959 as Legislative Route 277 according to CAhighways.  The planned alignment of LRN 277 first appears on the 1960 Division of Highways State Map.  Cahuilla Road and Kenworthy-Bautista Road are shown to be more or less the existing through route.


It appears that instead of building a new alignment for LRN 277 the Division of Highways opted to assume maintenance of Cahuilla Road and Kenworthy-Bautista Road.  LRN 277 can be seen aligned over Cahuilla Road and Kenworthy-Bautista Road on the 1962 Division of Highways State Map.


During the 1964 State Highway Renumbering LRN 277 was reassigned as an eastern extension of CA 71.  The new assignment of CA 71 over what was LRN 277 can be seen on the 1964 Division of Highways Map.


According to CAhighways CA 71 was truncated in 1974 to I-15 near Murrieta.  This truncation led to CA 71 between CA 79 and CA 74 being reassigned as CA 371.  CA 371 can be seen for the first time on the 1975 Caltrans State Highway Map.   CA 371 as an assigned number was a simple adding of a "3" to the previous CA 71 designation. 



Part 2; a drive on California State Route 371

My approach to CA 371 eastbound was from CA 79 southbound.  CA 371 is signed as a cut-off road to Indio.







Interestingly Post Mileage on CA 371 begins at RIV 56.469 which is a trace vestige of the previous CA 71 designation.  CA 371 eastbound is immediately signed as a Daytime Headlight Safety Corridor for the next 18 miles.  Truck traffic on CA 371 is advised against 30 foot or longer loads.  Traffic is further advised that CA 371 is susceptible to chain restrictions.





Anza is signed as 14 miles away on CA 371 east.  Palm Desert is signed as 43 miles away and Indio is signed at 53 miles.


CA 371 eastbound traverses the semi-arid terrain of the Santa Rosa Mountain foothills and enters the Cahuila Indian Reservation at Post Mile RIV 67.145.



















CA 371 east passes through the Cahuila Reservation and enters the community of Anza.






Anza lies at an elevation of 3,921 feet above sea level in Anza Valley.  The community of Anza is named after Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza which explored Anza Valley in 1774 and 1775.  CA 371 passes through Anza on Cahuilla Road where it transitions onto Kenworthy-Bautista Road.












CA 371 east of Anza begins to ascend into the Santa Rosa Mountains, traffic is advised the Safety Corridor ceases.





CA 371 east enters San Bernardino National Forest at Post Mile RIV 75.264.  CA 371 ascends through the Santa Rosa Mountains to an east terminus  at CA 74/Pines-to-Palms Highway at Post Mile RIV 77.143.









Labels:

Comments

Peter Bryan said…
Suggest edit/addition at end of first paragraph:
It is part of an east-west corridor formed by parts of California 79, California 371, and California 74 between Temecula and the Palm Springs-Coachella Valley area.The same east-west corridor serves as a popular short cut for motorists traveling between San Diego County and Palm Springs-Coachella Valley regions for the spectacular scenery and shorter distance (by 25 miles) versus the heavily congested freeway route via Interstates 10, 15 and 215.
12:45 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

By
  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...
Post a Comment
Read more

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

By
Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...
Post a Comment
Read more

California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway

By
From 2017 through to early 2019 I drove the majority of the California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway from CA 89 southwest to CA 99. CA 70 is an approximately 178.5 mile state highway which starts at US 395 near the Nevada State Line and travels west through the Feather River Canyon to CA 99.  CA 70 is often referred to as the Feather River Highway" given it's close association with the river.  Historically CA 70 was previously signed as US 40A and CA 24.  The Legislative Routes prior to the 1964 California Highway Renumbering that made up the current route of CA 70 are as follows: -  Legislative Route Number 21 from US 395 westward to Oroville. -  LRN 87 from Oroville south to Marysville. -  LRN 232 from Marysville to the current junction with CA 99.  CA 70 was even dual signed with CA 99 into Sacramento on what was LRN 232 for a time. The change from US 40A/LRN 21/LRN 87/LRN 232 can be seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Ma...
Post a Comment
Read more