Content area
Full Text
Seventeen years ago, a few miles east of the Three Points Cafe, Donald Lien saw Bigfoot scurry across the road. Honest. Today, perched upon a bar stool, he'll even show you a plaster cast of the hairy beast's footprint.
Lien's colorful tale is old news among the regulars at this rural cafe, a combination tavern, short-order eatery and country market nestled next to the remote junction of Pine Canyon and Three Points roads 35 miles northwest of Palmdale.
For more than half a century, the Three Points Cafe has been the only public meeting place in this scenic, sparsely populated settlement at the northwestern edge of Los Angeles County. High Desert ranchers, bikers and refugees from smog-choked city neighborhoods have sauntered into the cafe for beer, burgers and banter.
In recent months, however, this local landmark has approached its own fork in the road.
Burdened by health problems, the owners of the Three Points Cafe put it up for sale in November. While awaiting a buyer, the owners have been opening the once-bustling business just two afternoons a week. Two prospective sales have collapsed, but a third is being negotiated, leaving some patrons concerned about the future of this rugged outpost.
"I hope they don't turn it into an ice cream parlor," said Jim Bowman, a longtime resident of Three Points.
The cafe's origins are as hazy as its future.
On the barroom wall are some old black-and-white photos from the early days of the business, including one depicting its first owner and builder, the late Bert Gookins. Gookins' grandson, a Three Points resident named Bill Hart, isn't clear on when it was built.
"Some say 1912, some say 1924-I think it was just a...