Lake Los Angeles, CA

Granite buttes and Joshua trees give Lake Los Angeles its look, a desert community strung across the far eastern side of the Antelope Valley. It's county-run Los Angeles County territory with its own library, park and shopping strip, which is more than most places this far out can say. The streets cover a lot of ground. Near the commercial center on 170th Street East the houses sit a little closer, while toward the edges they thin out among the buttes and creosote flats. Almost everything is single story, and older manufactured homes share the same wide lots with houses built in recent years. The outdoors starts at the edge of town. Saddleback Butte State Park lies to the north, and a bit farther the state's Indian museum occupies a 1920s chalet built into Piute Butte, with Native American collections on view weekends. In town, Stephen Sorensen Park is where the ball games, splash pads and seasonal carnivals happen. The 170th Street strip covers burgers and pupusas. La Poblanita Bakery a bit south on the same street opens early for bolillos and the green chicken tamales that tend to sell out on weekend mornings. A few markets cover everyday groceries, while the county library on Avenue O rounds out the errands you can do without leaving town. People who settle in Lake Los Angeles usually stock up on those runs and spend the rest of the week closer to home, where a walk at dusk comes with a clear view of the buttes and, not long after, a lot of stars.