Littlerock, CA

Littlerock works as the main street for a big slice of the eastern Antelope Valley, the small unincorporated Los Angeles County town where people from Sun Village, Juniper Hills and Pearblossom end up for a tank of gas, a library book or a plate of eggs. Pearblossom Highway is that main street, and most of what happens in town happens within sight of it. Away from the highway the place turns agricultural fast. Side roads run past rows of stone fruit and small house lots big enough for a horse, a workshop or a dozen trees. Homes are modest, a blend of older houses and manufactured homes, and few blocks look alike because most were built one parcel at a time. Salinas Family Orchard on 80th Street East lets visitors pick their own peaches, nectarines, plums and Asian pears, and sells peach jam and honey at its stand through early fall. Charlie Brown Farms, the sprawling roadside market on the highway, fills up with highway travelers on weekends. The Littlerock Library on 80th Street East is the town's county branch. For trails, Devil's Punchbowl Natural Area is a short drive up into the foothills, and Jackie Robinson Park in Sun Village hosts a Juneteenth festival each June. From late spring through early fall the stands are open, the signs are out and weekend traffic is steady, and in winter much of that goes quiet, leaving mostly the grocery and gas stops. Those who settle in Littlerock tend to plan their errands around the highway's weekend rush and their summers around which orchard has fruit on the trees.