Skip to main content

California State Route 116

This past month I drove a segment of California State Route 116 from US Route 101 in Cotati east to CA 121 near Schellville. 


CA 116 is a 46 mile east/west State Highway entirely located within Sonoma County.  CA 116 begins near CA 1 in Jenner and travels easterly to a terminus at CA 121.



Part 1; the history of CA 116

What is now CA 116 entered the State Highway System as Legislative Route 104 in 1933 according to CAhighways.org.  LRN 104 between Jenner and Sebastopol was added to Sign Route 12 in 1934.  CA 12 can be seen on LRN 104 between Jenner and Sebastopol on the 1938 Division of Highways State Map.


During the 1964 State Highway Renumbering CA 12 west of Sebastopol was given a new planned alignment that was an unbuilt segment of LRN 51.  All of LRN 104 was redefined with a new designation of CA 116.  CA 116 included a multiplex of US 101 from Cotati south to Petaluma.  The change from LRN 104 to CA 116 can be seen by comparing the 1963 Division of Highways Map to the 1964 Edition.

1963 Division of Highways Map


1964 Division of Highways Map

 

Part 2; a drive on CA 116 from US 101 in Cotati to CA 121 near Schellville

My approach to eastbound CA 116 was on US 101 south in Cotati.  After an interchange at Exit 481B US 101 south picks up CA 116 east on a multiplex.







Petaluma is signed as 8 miles from Cotati on US 101 south/CA 116 east.


US 101 south/CA 116 east ascends over a small pass before descending into the City of Petaluma.










US 101 south/CA 116 east Exit 476 accesses Old Redwood Highway and Petaluma Boulevard.



US 101 south/CA 116 east next has an Exit at East Washington Street.



CA 116 east splits from US 101 south onto Lakeville Street at Exit 472B.





As CA 116 east exits onto Lakeville Highway there is signage directing traffic to Valejo's Petaluma Adobe.




CA 116 east follows Lakeville Highway to the City Limits of Petaluma where it enters a Safety Corridor.










CA 116 east follows Lakeville Highway to Post Mile SON 39.279 where it makes a left hand turn onto Stage Gulch Road.






CA 116 east ascends through Stage Gulch on the namesake Stage Gulch before making a right hand turn at Old Abode Road at Post Mile SON 41.799.  The climb through Stage Gulch is probably the most interesting part of CA 116 east of US 101 and is actually quite scenic.













CA 116 east follows Stage Gulch Road to approximately Post Mile SON 44.83 where it transitions onto Arnold Drive.












CA 116 east follows Arnold Drive to a terminus at CA 121.







Comments

Popular posts from this blog

2018 Mojave Road Trip Part 2; The deadly desert highway (California State Route 127 and Nevada State Route 373)

After leaving Barstow via Old Highway 58 my next destination was in Death Valley.  To access Death Valley from rural San Bernardino County required a trek on north on Interstate 15 to California State Route 127 which becomes Nevada State Route 373 at the state line. Along I-15 I encountered the road sign oddity that is Zzyzx Road about eight miles south of Baker.   Zzyzx Road is a four mile road that used to go to the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa.   The spa was founded in the 1940s and the owner made up the name "Zzyzx" to claim it was the last word in the English Language.  The spa has been shut down since the 1970s and is now part of a Desert Studies Center for California State University. The southern terminus of CA 127 in Baker is located at I-15 exit 246.  CA 127 is a 91 mile north/south highway which runs to the Nevada State Line in Inyo County.  CA 127 is called Death Valley Road from I-15 northward.  South of CA 127 ...

Finding the Pre-Emption Road of New York State

  The Pre-Emption Road (or rather a series of roads named Pre-Emption Road) follows a survey line called the Pre-Emption Line, drawn in the early days of the United States. The story begins with Massachusetts and New York having competing land claims to modern day Western New York State that have their roots in colonial charters granted by the British. After the Revolutionary War ended, this land became the frontier of the nation and its settlement became a priority for the new American government. During this era, there were a lot of competing land claims that needed to be settled. It was no different with the land claims between New York State and Massachusetts. On November 30, 1786, Massachusetts and New York sent representatives to Hartford, Connecticut to resolve their competing land claims. In less than three weeks, the representatives had reached a compromise. Massachusetts would receive pre-emption rights, meaning the right to sell the land after the Indian title ...

What's In a Name?: When the Roads Really Do Tell a Story

  Our tagline on the Gribblenation blog is "because every road tells a story". Some roads tell different stories than others. Along our travels, we may see historic markers that tell us a little story about the roads we travel or the places we pass by. Some historic markers are more general, as to telling us who lived where or what old trail traversed between two towns. During my travels across New York State and other states or provinces, I pass by many historic markers, some with interesting or amusing references to roads. I wanted to highlight a few of the markers I've seen along my travels around the Empire State and help tell their stories. Those stories may be as specific as explaining the tales of a tree that was used to help measure a distance of eight miles from Bath to Avoca in Steuben County, as referenced on the Eight Mile Tree historical marker above. They may also help point the way along historical roads first used centuries ago, or may help tell a local l...