California State Route 284

California State Route 284 is an eight-mile State Highway located entirely in Plumas County. California State Route 284 begins at California State Route 70 in Chilcoot and terminates at Frenchman Reservoir. California State Route 284 is one of many pre-existing roads which were annexed into the State Highway System by way of 1970 Legislative Chapter 1473. Above as the blog cover photo is a southward view on California State Route 284 (taken by Josh Schmid) as it descends from Frenchman Reservoir on Frenchman Lake Road.

Part 1; the history of California State Route 284 and unconstructed California State Route 285

California State Route 284 (CA 284) was adopted as part of 1970 Legislative Chapter 1473. CA 284 was designated as a highway connecting from Route 70 in Chilhoot to Frenchman Reservoir. Legislative Chapter 1473 defined numerous State Highways during 1970, some of the others include CA 283, CA 281, CA 271, and CA 270.

Notably the Chapter 1473 State Highways appear to have been contingent that an existing roadway be built to State Highway Standards. To that end Frenchman Lake was completed as a California Department of Water Resources irrigation project by 1961 along Little Last Chance Creek. The existing Frenchman Lake Road appears to have been improved during the Frenchman Lake project and was adopted as the alignment of CA 284. Notably modern Frenchman Lake Road appears on the 1935 Division of Highways Map of Plumas County north of Chilhoot.

On the 1975 Caltrans State Highway Map the full 8-mile route of CA 284 appears as a fully functional State Highway.

Chapter 2; a virtual drive on California State Route 284

From CA 70 west in Chilhoot-Vinton traffic is advised that CA 284 can be found on Frenchman Lake Road.

Below is a northward series of photos by Josh Schmid of CA 284 as it climbs from Chilcoot to a terminus at Frenchman Reservoir. CA 284 northbound terminates at Post Mile PLU 8.302 at the south shore of Frenchman Lake.

Below of series of photos by Josh Schmid depicts southbound CA 284 descending from Frenchman Reservoir to CA 70 in Chilcoot.

Update history

- First published on May 24, 2020.

- First updated on September 12, 2022.

Comments

Hawaii Route 8930

Hawaii Route 8930 is a 2.5-mile State Highway on the Island of O'hau. Hawaii Route 8930 is aligned over Kualakai Parkway over the course of its entire alignment south from Interstate H-1 to Kapolei Parkway. Hawaii Route 8930 is one of the newest Hawaii Routes only having been completed during 2010. This page is part of the Gribblenation O'ahu Highways page. All Gribblenation and Roadwaywiz media related to the highway system of O'ahu can be found at the link below: https://www.gribblenation.org/p/gribblenation-oahu-highways-page.html Part 1; the history of Hawaii Route 8930 The history of Hawaii Route 8930 is brief given it is a modern facility. Hawaii Route 8930 and what was known as "North-South Road" were built to facilitate the developing areas of Kapolei on western O'ahu. According to hawaiihighways.com the first stage of Hawaii Route 8930 was completed from Kapolei Parkway north to Farrington Highway as a four-lane highway during November...

Madera County Road 607 and the Stockton-Los Angeles Road

Madera County Road 607 is an approximately seven-mile rural unsurfaced highway which spans from Road 600 near Raymond west to Road 29. Road 607 west from Raymond Road Cemetery (established in 1905) is part of the Stockton-Los Angeles Road corridor surveyed in 1853. The corridor lies in the gap between Fresno Crossing at the Fresno River west to Newton's Crossing at the Chowchilla River. The Buchanan Copper Mine would be along what is now Road 607 in the namesake Buchanan Hollow during July 1863. The Buchanan Mine is thought to have once had a population of between 1,000-1,500 residents by the early 1870s. Copper prices would decline in the decade after the Civil War and much of the activity at Buchanan shifted towards cattle ranching. The last businesses in the community would shutter during World War II and it is now a true ghost town. Part 1; the history of Madera County Road 607 and the Stockton-Los Angeles Road What is now Road 607 was a component of the larger Sto...

Old US Route 60/70 through Hell (Chuckwall Valley Road and Ragsdale Road)

Back in 2016 I explored some of the derelict roadways of the Sonoran Desert of Riverside County which were part of US Route 60/70; Chuckwalla Valley Road and Ragsdale Road. US 60 and US 70 were not part of the original run of US Routes in California. According to USends.com US 60 was extended into California by 1932. US 60 doesn't appear on the California State Highway Map until the 1934 edition. USends.com on US 60 endpoints 1934 State Highway Map Conversely US 70 was extended into California by 1934, it first appears on the 1936 State Highway Map. USends.com on US 70 endpoints 1936 State Highway Map When US 60 and US 70 were extended into California they both utilized what was Legislative Route Number 64 from the Arizona State Line west to Coachella Valley. LRN 64 was part of the 1919 Third State Highway Bond Act routes. The original definition of LRN 64 routed between Mecca in Blythe and wasn't extended to the Arizona State Line until 1931 acc...