Again, it’s ‘Frappez la rue, Jacques’ and we’re off. Ah, but first a stop at the Lectrolux for some coffee and I can download the new book I’ve got on loan through our library onto my I Pad. That done, we next hit the VC for the Park so I can exchange my ‘medium’ t-shirt which fits like a parachute for a ‘medium’ which actually is a medium. Ah, now I think we’re really on our way. Our goal is Green River, UT where there is a Conoco station with a truck parking area surrounding it. We think we’ll find a nice quiet spot for RV’s off to the side.
We finished route 50 through Nevada, the Loneliest Highway, as Life Magazine said in 1986. We didn’t find it so lonely, rather it was sparsely inhabited but not lonely. We loved the geography, we had some great experiences and met an awful lot of people who call this area home. We enjoyed exploring the towns along the way and thought they had lots to offer a traveler. Here is a map of route 50 across Nevada. Obviously, if you want to get across NV, this is the shortest way and also the least traveled. I would definitely take this route again.
We were very intrigued by the Range and Basin geography. Since Nevada is the most mountainous state in the US, and the mountains range from NNE to SSW, we knew we’d be climbing up and descending a lot. But it was fun to twist and turn through the slots as we climbed to the summit and then again as we descended.
At the bottom, we had the basin in front of us spreading for miles across the land before it hit the next range which we then climbed. We kept looking for Forrest Gump running along the road.
Up and over the Range, down and through the Basin. All across Nevada along route 50. On the map above the ranges are in green and the basins are the white strips between them. However, this map does not do Nevada justice since there are ever so many more ranges and basins than shown here.
When we’ve taken Interstate 80 across Nevada, we traveled north of the Range and Basin geography along the yellow line in the map above and we weren’t as aware of the mountains and the basins. Route 50 goes through the middle and we were very aware of them.
We also enjoyed the small museums and towns people we spoke with as we traveled. Each was proud of her or his town which had suffered through boom and bust for the last hundred years. Look at the huge museum that we visited in Fallon, the beautifully redone buildings and museum in Eureka, the small park with the labyrinth and art work in Ely and the community spirit of small Baker in fighting Las Vegas over their water rights.
Yes, we have enjoyed traveling across Nevada and would certainly do it again.
After we left NV on our journey back to Iowa, we stopped in Delta, UT to see the Topaz Museum. I’m sure that all of you know about the Japanese detention camps in America during WWII. Not the best chapter in American History but it is a chapter and maybe we can learn from it. One of the Japanese detention camps, called Topaz, was in Delta, UT and there is a museum there along with some restored barracks. We pulled in, circled the block and spotted a ‘do’ at a local tire company. Hot dogs, hamburgers, music, all the works, even a huge gorilla. Well, maybe later but museum first.
Unfortunately the museum is in the process of moving to a new building and wasn’t open. That left time for the hamburgers. Now, of course, none of you would ever think that Nancy and Gary would lust after hamburgers cooked over a grill. Well, it that’s what you think , you’re wrong. Usually we eat Morningstar Black Bean Burgers but we do like a good hamburger. We don’t get them often and today it’s karma. It was meant to be. It’s destiny. Whatever you call it, I heard that hamburger calling my name in harmony with the mustard, ketchup and pickle relish.
A stop at the local grocery store for milk after our lunch and we were on our way. We have never traveled through this part of Utah but remember how beautiful it was when we traveled through to Moab last year. This just confirmed our memories. We were traveling over the San Raphael Swell and the views to the south were gorgeous. Every ‘view’ stop had scenes that were more beautiful than the last. And the westbound lane had vistas as awesome as ours in the eastbound lane
We stopped at each and every one and just marveled at what nature had wrought. Look at these colors, look at these escarpments, look at the cliffs and valleys. WOW. Interstate 70 goes across what is called the San Raphael Swell, where the earth heaved up and we can see all of the layers that formed the crust in this one spot. A sign at one of the view ahead said it was as if the arc of the rainbow were sliced off at the top and we could see all the colors arrayed before us.
The last view area was the best. It showed how they had the cut through the mountains for Interstate 70.
Now, I suppose I should be appalled at the scar left on the land by Interstate 70. However, I understand how important the Interstate system is to America and realize that we can’t always leave everything pristine. Not only does Interstate 70 help in interstate commerce and in uniting the country, it also helps us get around much better. It also helps get people out to see the beauty of this country. Isn't that ironic: we destroy some of the beauty so that people can get out to see the beauty that’s left.
None the less, what an engineering feat to get this highway through here. Above to the left is a picture showing what the land looked like before they really began to make the cut. This picture was taken looking up the cut to the west. Here is what it looks like now and my picture was taken looking down the cut to the east. Also look at the curve they had to put into the highway to get the roadway down as far as they needed it to go to get through the cut.
Utah is one long geology lesson and imagine how helpful Google maps and satellite views are to geologists. They used to have to go up in airplanes to get the big picture. Now, they just log onto Google.
We saw others on their way through Utah, enjoying the beauty as we were. Here’s a family group. Gary and I recommend traveling by RV through the US and the best way to do so without the upfront expense is to rent one. We see these all over.
And, here we are ‘resting’ in a rest area.
We finally pulled out of the Raphael Swell area of Utah, into the flatter section where the town of Green River is. In the fall of 2010, we pulled into Green River and turned south to get to Moab. This year, we pulled off the highway into a large gravel lot next to a Conoco Truck stop for the evening. Not the most beautiful ‘campground’ but it had a large enough space for us, was fairly quiet and, with the lights and everyone else around, was pretty secure.
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