Day 5 - Capitol Reef National Park

Elmer had me up and going about 7:45AM.  It was about 65 degrees this morning! That did not last too long however.

Still a few miles to go before getting to the Park.

The visual end of the road in the above shot is something like 7 or 8 miles in the distance.  I measured a few of these long straight stretches from the time I crested a hill until I hit the next hill and they ranged from 5 to 10 miles...well you gotta do something until you get to the Park entrance.

One of the first things we came to was this exhibit which discusses the abandoned uranium mines that were in the area.  The greyish line of rock contained traces of uranium.  Its hard to see in the picture but there are two mine openings that were visible but had iron gated doors on them, the yellow arrows show where they are.  

We got to the Visitor Center and there were only a few people so I paid my fee and got a Senior Annual pass that will get me in to any other National Parks for a year for $20, what a deal!  I took the Fruita Scenic Drive and a few of the off shoots along it.  These two first shots are along the Grand Wash road.

You become overwhelmed by the different formations of rock, how they crumbled in some places and not in others.  You can see the layers of sediment and soil that made up the structures over millions of years.

After about 10 miles or so we hit the end of the Park maintained dirt road where there was an old homestead.  Imagine trying to live here!

Elmer wanted to know ... "IS THIS THE HOTEL???"

Back to some shade in the camping area near the Visitors Center for a light lunch and then off toward Moab UT

As you leave the Park on Utah 24 East the countryside continues to open up more and more...

Somewhere along the drive to Moab the cellular service kicked back in and a notice came up on the phone (its my navigation system) that said both Susan and Steven had called.  I pulled over at this structure which had a fence topped with barbed wire but no signs or information about it.  It as "middle of nowhere" as anyplace I've been but it had 2 bars of cell service!

After the phone calls there were still a couple hours of driving....you've seen it before...:)

...but then...it got more exciting.  I was driving across some wide open plains areas and it was very windy.  I could feel it buffeting the Jeep.  In the distance it seemed to be hazy brown.  

..hmmm...

...OK this isn't fun anymore...

...so I had my lights on high beams, my fog lights on and my blinkers on...

..but "the Sun will come up tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow"...

I arrived safely in Moab UT around 3PM.  What is it with these towns that decide to tear up the middle of the streets???  It was 65 degrees this moring in Richfield UT and when I went to get dinner it was 105 degrees in Moab!  Dinner was take out Pad Thai from Arches Thai.  I could have eaten outside on their patio, but thought the wiser course was to take it back to the hotel. 

By the way, if you were wondering how I get the dashcam photos while it says I'm doing 65 MPH, there is a voice command I say to take the picture.  If the camera is not the dash cam, I have pulled over to the side of the road or into a turnout.  Tomorrow will be exploring Arches National Park and/or Canyonlands National Park.  I'll decide tonight but will be staying in Moab again tomorrow night.  See you in the next blog.

Day 4 - 10,000 ft and eastward

Today was an early morning.  I was up at 6am and on the road by 7.  

The destination was the Great Basin National Park.  I wanted to take the Wheeler Peak Scenic drive.  It doesn't get to the summit, that's a hike at the trail head but its as high as the Jeep could go. It was about an hour drive from Ely and guess what the scenery on the drive was like...

We got to the Visitor Center which did not open until 9 so Elmer and I started up the mountain.  Just after starting we came across a roadside exhibit on farming in the area describing the challenges that farmers face in the region, even today.  Mostly its about water.  Elmer also thought he found a new ride.

The ride up was relatively easy, a bit curvy but well paved.

With some nice scenery...

...ahh...the summit (trailhead :)

The trail head elevation is just a bit over 10,000 feet.  The hike up would take you to 13,161 feet.  Next, head down the mountain and about 3 hours to Richfield UT.  Susan told me that Utah is now one of the Covid 19 hotspots.  Fortunately the county that Richfield is in has had zero cases so far!

Along the way there was more of this:

and..

Eventually I did start to see more farming with irrigation and more population.

I arrived safely in Richfield UT, am now on Mountain Daylight Time.  Dinner was at the R&R Frontier Village.  They had patio seating but the wind was too strong.  There were no other diners so I opted to eat in the restaurant rather than take it back to the hotel.  The trip tomorrow will be to Moab UT through the Capitol Reef National Park.  I will spend a two or three hours in the park which will make the entire trip 6-7 hours long.  I then plan to spend two days in Moab visiting Arches National Park and possibly Canyon Lands National Park.  Here's the route to Moab.

https://goo.gl/maps/svD8F7J4v6RHTPSS7

Day 3 - Nowhere Nevada

I left Carson City about 8:30AM at a relatively cool 79 degrees.  Did I mention it was 101 when I arrived yesterday and that was cool compared to Redding.  Today's title refers to a water tank I saw about mid-way in today's trip that was painted in white letters on a black tank..."Nowhere, Nevada".  I couldn't get a photo but it said a lot about the surrounding landscape.  Leaving Carson City on US 50 the countryside was desert but there was a bustling town.

I was surprised when I came across the Lahontan State Recreation area.  There was a pretty large lake and a lot of boaters there.  Elmer and I stopped for a leg stretch.

About an hour out of Carson city there were still a few structures and ranches that you could see along the way...

In Nevada they have roundabouts at some of their intersections.  I noticed them in the town of Carson City in several places and here's one on a US 50 intersection.  Notice the metallic artwork.  These pieces of art were found at a number of bridges, intersection and along the roadway.

There are several petroglyph sites in this region and I stopped at Grimes Point that was right along the road.  There was an interpretive display, a restroom and a couple of trails.  I did the quarter mile trail to the petroglyph site.  Interestingly, this area was once under about 400 feet of Lake Lahonton about 10,000 years ago.  Its also close to a Naval airbase (Navy in the desert?) and you could hear and see fighter jets taking off about every 15 minutes.

After this point the scenery was pretty much like the classic photo image you see of the loneliest highway.

At one point Elmer and I pulled over to take these shots from the middle of the road in both directions (and Elmer laughing at me).

There is a spot along the highway known as the "Shoe Tree".  People have tied their shoes together and thrown them up into the tree.  Its a tourist spot for sure but we made the mandatory stop.  There is nothing else there except the tree and the parking lot.

From here its more of...

...and...

...and...

...wait..eventually you reach those hill or mountains in the distance...

...and after you go through the mountain pass its....

...and...

You did want to share this journey with me .... right...?  I have a dozen more of these types of images taken along the way but will spare you, you get the picture!

Tomorrow will be a drive to Great Basin National Park and a drive up the Wheeler Scenic Drive.

https://goo.gl/maps/iF5pr1jE8UcZgjP17

  I will probably spend a couple of hours in the park and then head to the Hampton Inn at Richfield UT.

https://goo.gl/maps/PbChz25JW3vcrpDC9

Day 2 - On to Nevada and an Off-road trip

Got away from Redding CA about 8:30AM and was driving to Carson City NV through the Lassen National Forest.  A pleasant drive but I wasn't doing much sightseeing.  Elmer and I did stop at a rest area...

...and that's where we saw that some fellow who was driving from Redding to Carson City went missing June 19, 2020. 

I decided to move along,  The route took us through Susanville.  I was hoping they would have a big Welcome to Susanville sign I could mug next to but the store signs in the background will have to do.  

I was driving along and noticed an SUV behind me that seemed like it might be a Highway Patrol car.  As I went over a little rise I saw lettering on his roof confirming it.  I was doing the speed limit on cruise control but you always wait for the lights to come on.  As a passing lane came up, he came along side and passed me...then another one passed me, and another, and another.  There were a total of 7 K-9 patrol cars traveling along.  If you look closely they are visible in the middle of this lineup for a road construction hold.

I arrived in Carson City about 1:30PM, had some lunch and then headed for Humbolt-Toiyabe National Forest and a drive along the Kings Canyon Road.  Its a well traveled 4 wheel drive road. I've driven on a number of gravel and forest roads but this was the first one that high clearance and 4wd was needed to get through.

There were only a few tight spots that took a careful bit of driving and taking the right line to get through...this was one.

It was actually easier than it looks, the jeep just went right through.  I did air down the tires to make the ride over choppy rocks smoother and give more traction over larger rocks like this one.  There were plenty of views.

As I got to the end of the track I saw this sign...I did not see one of these on the end that I started on!

...well I guess Jeeps can get through also!  It really wasn't that difficult. After this I went along the Lake Tahoe Shore drive.  It was scenic but packed with people, too many to make it enjoyable.

To end the day I was able to get a takeout salmon salad from the Sassafras Eclectic Food Joint!

Tomorrow I travel US 50 across Nevada; the Lonliest Road. Probably boring as all get out but something I wanted to do.  The route is https://goo.gl/maps/HcgxkoefjVS2jqkR6