Poland Road

Poland Road is a sampler menu of all that the Bradshaw Mountains offer. The salad bar profers Ponderosa Pine forests, scrub oak and manzanita chaparral, and high desert grasslands. The spread features mashed potatoes in the form of a nicely graded road but topped off by some spicy chorizo when you crawl your way through rock obstacles. For protein, just watch the edges of the roadside forests for venison on the hoof or turkeys trotting into the scrub brush. After the feast, kick back in a nice campsite to listen to a concert of the wind singing in the upper branches of the tall pines. Or, if you feel like a bit of an after-dinner stroll, amble into the Poland Walker Tunnel and muse on the history of the hardy prospectors and entrepreneurs that fought their way into these mountains. But don't leave without the satisfying dessert of finding a suitable viewpoint to admire the long vista of a wonderfully rugged landscape. In summer, the maitre d' suggests the view from the lookout tower atop Mount Union but kindly ask the doorman for entry. Poland Road. It's a satisfying meal.