Author Topic: Does anyone know the post for driving west from Salt Lake City?  (Read 594 times)

Offline JimDiGriz

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A few weeks ago there was a post on things to look at while driving west from SLC.  I'll be flying in next weekend and driving to Wells (during the day) and would like to pick out the sights.  Does anyone know which post said what to look for?

Thanks!

Offline Dr. Who

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Re: Does anyone know the post for driving west from Salt Lake City?
« Reply #1 on: June 07, 2018, 09:19:34 PM »
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Offline JimDiGriz

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Nelspot

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Re: Does anyone know the post for driving west from Salt Lake City?
« Reply #3 on: June 10, 2018, 03:02:52 PM »
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To someone who is in a hurry to get across the interstate, I-80 can be boring as all hell.  But boredom can be good, too.  I think it brings out the creativity in people.  Thank heavens we don't have to drive that stretch at 55MPH anymore!  Here's a short synopsis of what you will see on that stretch (one that I've driven many times):

For the first couple of miles, it's still sort of industrial, and open, especially to the North (where you'll soon be looking over the Great Salt Lake).  To the south, there is a large pile of rock that was removed from Kennecott Mine (the largest open-pit copper mine in N. America, and located well to the south).  They'll have sprinklers all over it to keep the dust down.  As you turn a corner, you'll see a very tall smoke stack, belonging to the Kennecott smelter where they process the rock to extract copper (the main component & the main source of income) as well as gold, silver and lots of other precious metals.  This is all transported from the mine, some 13 miles to the south, by conveyor belt!

Across I-80 from there is a building that has large gold "onion domes".  It is called "Salt Air" and was once a resort where people would come to escape the summer heat and swim in the Great Salt Lake.  The original building burned down years ago, so what you see is a replica.  A snap shot for the cover of one of the Beach Boys albums was taken with the then-abandoned and dilapidated Salt Air in the background, and the Beach Boys in front.  Nearby was a state park where you could enjoy the beach, but as the lake has dried and shrunk, the beach got further and further away from the park, so the park was decommissioned.

Tooele (pronounced two-ill-ah) and Grantsville are the last cities you'll see before Wendover, about 1 & 1/2 hours away, and truck stops are right off the highway, so if you'd like to get something for the trip, this is the place.  (From here, there are only two rest areas before Wendover, one about twenty miles out and another just outside of Wendover, and other than one small one in Dell, NO gas stations).  There is a large military depot in Tooele.

Exit 77 will take you to Iosepa, a ghost town that was colonized by Hawaiians.  I've never been there, but I understand that there is a cemetery there, and some fire hydrants.  Much further down that road, though, you can get to Dugway (57 miles from I-80), a military proving and testing grounds that does test lethal gases and some say should be called Area 52 because of it's secrecy, but we'll never know.  The Pony Express trail (still drivable, well-graded, and easily navigated with the family car) is only a couple miles south of that. 

You'll see a few mining operations across from Grantsville.  Morton Salt extracts salt from the lake.  Other companies mine other minerals.  One company puts something back into the earth -- radioactive waste, and it's south of Clive.  Don't ask me where the name 'Clive' comes from, but several of the exit names all the way to Elko come from the names given to railroad sidings, as there is nothing else notable to use.

The Salt Flats start at Knolls.  There's a few plants in the vicinity, but they quickly diminish, leaving nothing but a large, flat salty area.  Look for the 'graffiti' in the sand alongside the highway -- people will spell out things, or leave their initials in anything they can find (often just rocks), but it makes the drive interesting.  The Flats are about 45 miles across (can't imagine doing it in a covered wagon), so someone built a tree about half way across.  Something to look at.

Just a few miles outside of Wendover is an exit to go to the speedway.  Since your's is a rental, I wouldn't worry about driving out on the salt (unless it's wet); otherwise, I'd highly recommend you wash the undercarriage well after driving on it as the salt can be very corrosive, but it is where the magic happens, where they set the land speed records.  That occurs in the last week in August, if the flats are ready.  That's when the Flats are the hardest; in the winter and spring to early summer months, they are just muddy and you can get stuck.  So unless it has rained recently before you get there (or if other readers are reading this and are doing the drive any other time of the year when it would be bad) you should be fine if you want to test the salt.  The gas station right by the exit, BTW, was used in the making of the movie, "The Philadelphia Experiment", and the salt flats themselves are seen in many others, like "Independence Day".

Wendover is a town divided by a state line, and the casinos?  You park in Utah and walk into Nevada, with a demarkation line across the parking lot.  A hill on the side of East Wendover, between the town and the interstate, gives a great view of the Salt Flats.  An easy walk (about a 1/4 mile) puts you at the hilltop that sits between the RR tracks and I-80 (if you get a 4wd, you can drive up it).  Wendover was a military base where they trained the crews that were to drop the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and tours are available, and are worth it if you are history buff.

From Wendover, you drive for about an hour to get to Wells.  Just to the north, there is a very distinctive peak, Pilot Peak, that you may have seen from the Flats.  It is said to have guided the early pioneers across the Salt Flats, and once across, was a much needed (and much appreciated, I'm sure) water source.  But it's also the area of what is known as 'Hastings Cutoff' which was promoted as a faster way to get to California, but didn't prove so for the likes of the Donner-Reed party, for it only slowed them down all the more.  I have to admit, this is my favorite section -- nothing really to see, but it's empty and open.  I'm not saying you should 'let 'er rip' but you could.  I'm not sure how often it's patrolled, but it is quiet.  You and Nevada, and the sound of your wheels beneath you.  Near Wells is a state prison, so don't pick up any hitchhikers! 

Wells is a very quiet town, and had a large 6.1 earthquake hit it in 2008, which really wrecked the town.  Many historical buildings had to be torn down.  The largest businesses in town are the truck stops (the first ones since Wendover) and the brothels.  There are a couple of hotels by the east exit, with a new one being built next to the truck stops.  The speed limit is painfully slow in that area, so be careful.  You can reach the brothels either by driving into the center of town, crossing the tracks and working your way back or by driving north on Rt 93 for about 1/2 mile, then turning left (there will be signs to the brothels).  Donna's is the one to the east, Bella's is the other one.  Donna's was hit hard by flooding in the spring of 2017, and they did quite a bit of remodeling.  Years ago, it was owned by (and I've heard two stories on this) either the boxer Jack Dempsey or his wife, but does date back to 1867 -- again, something that a history buff would enjoy, and a good excuse to give to your wife for wanting to stop there.  Of the two, Bella's is the largest, but not by much.  Which one is best?  It's for you to find out.

From Wells to Elko, the area is mostly ranches and farms. To the south are the Ruby Mountains.  As you get closer to Elko, you'll see more industrial settings, with many of the businesses supporting the mining industries that now supports Elko.  But it wasn't always that way -- ranching and sheep herding was very big business at one time.  Today, a unique remnant of that are the descendants of some of the early sheep herders, who are Basques (perhaps you've heard the term "Basque Separatists", who occasionally make international news.  The Basque people live in a section of the Pyrenees mountains, between Spain and France and by the Bay of Biscay, but were brought to Northern Nevada to herd sheep in the 1800s)  There are still restaurants in town that serve Basque food, a unique blend of flavors that shouldn't be missed.  Besides, two of the restaurants are only a couple of minutes walking distance from the Red Light District -- Mona's, Inez's, Sue's and Desert Rose.  Park at one and walk to the other (or park up the street at Stockman's Casino and walk to both). All within about 1/10th of a mile (or less) of each other.

OK, I've prattled on long enough, but it's a four hour drive from SLC to Elko (or add another 20 minutes and drive to Carlin where there's another brothel, loved by many -- Dovetail) and knowing a bit about the area may not make the trip go by any faster, but it certainly can make it a bit more interesting!  And I know I didn't cover everything, but for someone on their first trip in that direction, it does add a bit of interest.  I hope you don't find so many things to see that you forget your main purpose!  Have fun/take care.

Offline JimDiGriz

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Re: Does anyone know the post for driving west from Salt Lake City?
« Reply #4 on: June 10, 2018, 04:34:14 PM »
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Wow - thank you, Nelspot.  You went above and beyond on this.  I like the idea of stopping in Iosepa.  Besides being interesting, it'll be after an hour of driving which is a great time to stretch my legs.  But since I'm also a jokester, you say:

"Exit 77 will take you to Iosepa, a ghost town that was colonized by Hawaiians.  I've never been there, but I understand that there is a cemetery there, and some fire hydrants."

I'm not an expert on city planning, but why on earth would anyone want to colonize a ghost town?!?

With my sincere thanks,

Jim DiGriz

Offline crappie1

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Re: Does anyone know the post for driving west from Salt Lake City?
« Reply #5 on: June 10, 2018, 06:47:38 PM »
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Awesome post Nelspot. Made that drive four times thus far.

Great to know some of the history.

Crazy you mention Clive. We always wondered where that stuff went after we deliver it in interchange to the UP. Well it, and the GPS equipment, and the no sense of humor guys with all the guns and comm equipment :o
Running in calm water, full live wells, hardwood campfires, beautiful ladies.

Offline vanityaffair

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Re: Does anyone know the post for driving west from Salt Lake City?
« Reply #6 on: June 12, 2018, 03:51:50 PM »
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Stop in to Donnas Ranch in wells Nevada and say hi to me Vanity Affair And my friends. It’s a cool house to check out.
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