Mamabear

Well maintained and out in the boonies, this street can take you to some nice desert walks. There are some buttes out that way, app. 90th and Ave B, that are great for quiet, smallish hikes. This road is like the other roads out here, with the exception of Ave D, being very, very quiet and open. There are hardly any people living out here, and you'll be able to stretch your legs and wander without anyone bothering you. I don't know if there is a law against it, but in most places on this street, you can let your dog run without a leash, and no one will care.

We always used Ave G to get to the freeway from our house on 90th street west. It's got the least amount of stop signs, and because it's more of a main drag (it even breaks into 4 lanes at one point when it passes Fox Field/Airstrip/Apollo Park) it's well maintained, so it's easier on your car. Most of the other west/east streets have dozens of really bad pot holes on them, so unless you want to drive a slalom course on your way to town and back, I'd take Ave. G.

Like most of the north/south bound streets on the Westside of Lancaster, this one too is a very lonely, very quiet street in very good condition. Little to no traffic whatsoever, you'll see very few houses, a feed store, and a school district building, but that's just about it from Quartz Hill to Ave D. I remember that it got very badly flooded one year when we had a ton of rain, I think 70th is pretty much the lowest part of the valley on the Westside, so that could be why there isn't much along it, but then again, there isn't much out there anyway. It's great to ride motorcycles on!

If you're looking for a quiet place to live with plenty of space to take your ATVs and horses out, then this street is pretty much for you as far as it can go. It's completely surrounded by wide open fields with very few farm type properties. The people are quiet, there is just about zero traffic at all, and the road is in pretty good condition compared to a lot of the other roads out here. They shift alot because of the sand underneath, but they keep 80th in pretty nice condition.

West of 90th St West, traveling west on Ave H, will take you to the Poppy Fields where the museum and trails are. A lot of people can see the fields from Lancaster but don't really know which road to take to get there. Just get off the 14 freeway at the Ave H exit, travel West, and keep going and going and going and going, then you'll see signs and finally the Reserve itself. It's a very quiet street lined with onion fields and just plain desert, so you'll have a peaceful trek.

West Ave I, until you hit about 10th St. West in Lancaster, is a quiet, rural street that has very widely spaced properties along it. There is no shortage of space out here, and is a great place to raise horses and other livestock. There won't be any nearby neighbors complaining about the rooster crowing or the dog barking, something I appreciate in a place to live. I took Ave I almost daily into town, as it was the most direct route from 90th street into where I'd be going, which was usually gas at the stations on 10th St. West.

90th Street is about the easiest way to get to West Rosamond from West Lancaster (take Ave L or M West to 90th then take 90th allllll the way North to Rosamond. There are hardly any stops along the way and it's faster than the freeway because you'll then avoid having to go west on Rosamond Blvd.) I love the wide open spaces, at some parts you can see all the way to the Tehachapi Mountains because there is nothing but sagebrush and tumbleweeds between the street and there.

87th St East is a very busy street that is mostly traversed by big-rigs and other trucks traveling off the 138. A nearby sand and gravel business employs these trucks which take 87th as a main way of getting to 138, and as a result, the street is not safe for kids to play near, etc. It's lined with residential area, and is only two narrow lanes, so it's not really meant for so much travel, and it's always covered with pot holes and dips. I don't recommend it to live on, but if you're trying to get from Lancaster/Palmdale to the 138, it is pretty much a direct route (if you're coming from the main desert take 90th East going North, which will become 87th East then hit the 138).

I lived here for 4 years about 10 years ago, and this formerly homey little street has deteriorated considerably since then. Every once in a while my siblings and I like to drive past places where we formerly lived, and I've seen this street have too many ups and downs to be comfortable with it. There is a nice park and school within walking distance, if you want to really walk through the run down neighborhood, and 87th street, at the corner of T-12 where I lived, is very, very busy and constantly overrun with big-rigs.

West Ave D-12, particularly where it meets 90th st. West, is one of the best places I ever lived. It's a desert, so you're not going to find spacious lawns or anything, but when it rains and you smell the sage letting off that sagebrush smell, or the wind is blowing and the tumbleweeds blow speeding past your car, you'll really relish the life out there. It's about 10-15 minutes from the town of Lancaster, which has everything you'll ever need, so you'll get the best of both worlds from this street.

Starting about the 3500 block of 23rd Ave West, near W Ruffner St., begins a quiet little neighborhood street that I just love. It's quiet, peaceful, the yards always look beautiful, and the houses aren't all crowded together, in fact they have very large backyards. This is by far my most favorite neighborhood and street in the area.

Starting at about the 3400 block of 26th Ave W, around W Bertona St., begins a shady lane opposite Chamberlain Lake (which isn't a lake), that you can stroll along all the way up until it becomes 27th PL W, and ends at W Manor Place. It is quiet, there are usually few walkers or joggers around, so you usually have the street to yourself. Having the nice open space to the west is very nice.

W Raye Street is a tiny street just south of Bay View Playground. There are a few cute single family homes along one side, while the park is on the other side. The street itself is quiet unless it's a ball game day, then you'll have families parking their mini-vans along it, but the crowd is always a family crowd, no rowdies.

Perkins Lane W is a short, beautiful drive along the coast. There isn't much traffic as it is eventually a dead-end street, but if you want to take a nice, pretty drive along the coast, this street is perfect for that. Head on over to Discovery Park when you're done and check out the scenery. The mature trees, beautiful ocean air, and sunny skies (hopefully) will give you a nice feeling of rest and relaxation and it won't have cost you much for a mini-vacation.

Starting at Discovery Park, take Utah Ave to Kansas Ave which will take you through beautiful trees where you can catch glimpes of the Puget Sound. There isn't too much bother from the sewer plant, the trees cover most of it so you don't even know it's there. Kansas will loop around to the east to turn into Illinois Ave and back to Utah Ave so you wind back up at the park, or you can take Kansas west to Alaska Ave, again winding back up at the park. All the drives are short scenic drives, get your kids out into nature via the car.

West Bertona street connects you between 22nd Avenue West and 25th Ave West. It's a short, quiet, traffic-free residential street, one of those back streets you can use as a short cut when you're running out of time. If I want to get from Gilman Ave going South to 25th Ave. without stopping at signs or too many long lights, I turn right onto W Bertona, and I'll get me to 25th Ave quickly.

W. Newell street is just a quiet residential street near the cemetery (Mt. Pleasant Cemetary) with some nice older homes on it, mature trees, and interesting people. It's a great connector from 5th Ave West (going south on it) turning east on Newell then to 3rd Ave. W. I try to remember connector streets so I don't get lost.

Lee street is a short, nice little street that connects you to 2nd Ave North and 1st Ave North. In the middle is Observatory Court, which is the nicest part of the street. There isn't an observatory there anymore, just a water tower, but if you're cruisin' the town, the kids will want to see what that thing is. From what I saw, Lee street is quiet and uncrowded. Just a small town street.

Taking Aurora Ave (the 99) north, turn west on Highland Drive. This street will not only take you past Bhy Kracke Park, but also into the neighborhood of Highland Place, where the Christmas Lights are the coolest! Keep going west and Highland Drive will turn into West Highland Drive, until you get to Parson's Gardens. That's the end of Highland Drive (it will turn into 8th Place West), but you will have seen some beautiful structures, trees, gardens, and if it's Christmastime, Christmas lights.

Broadway street is a nice street to cruise on; starting from E Yesler way then going north, you'll get to drive past Bobby Morns Playfield, Seattle Central Community College, Broadway Market, then it will take a jog eastward, turning into Broadway E, which will then take another jog eastward and become 10th Ave East. Keep going north towards Roanoke park, and you'll hit the 5 and the 520.