Walong is an unincorporated community

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 in Kern County

Kern County, California

Spreading across the southern end of the California Central Valley, Kern County is the fifth-largest county by population in California. Its economy is heavily linked to agriculture and to petroleum extraction, and there is a strong aviation and space presence. Politically, it has generally...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. It is located on the railroad 2.25 miles (3.6 km) southeast of Keene

Keene, California

Keene is a census-designated place in Kern County, California in the foothills of the Tehachapi Mountains at the southern extreme of the San Joaquin Valley. Keene is located northwest of Tehachapi, at an elevation of 2602 feet...

, at an elevation of 3058 feet (932 m).

The name, which honors W.A. Long (a Southern Pacific Railroad

Southern Pacific Railroad

The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....

official), was bestowed in 1876.

Walong is noted mostly as the location of the Tehachapi Loop, where railroad engineers curved the track around in a circle to gain elevation in a short lateral distance. Trains actually pass over themselves as they traverse this loop.