Category Archives: Utah

(Which means we are starting to head towards home and so must be on the back end of the adventure… sniff… sniff)

And so our urban sojourn draws to a close and we get ready to start the homeward leg of the trip.  Another fabulous breakfast and we are ready to head out of Salt Lake City.  Well, after we run a few errands of course.  First we need snacks for the road so we stop at the local grocery store, Harmons, which is like few stores I’ve ever visited.

Then another stop at the local Mercedes dealer.  Why you might ask?  Well, it seems that the hydraulics that control the convertible top are not functioning quite right.  Even though Frank had 4 of the cylinders rebuilt, apparently we now have leaks in one or two of the still old ones which causes major headaches – and lots of messy fluid spurts and drips – when the top goes up and down.  We bought a few bottles of hydraulic fluid when we arrived in SLC and it seemed like a good idea to have a few spares.  Unfortunately, the downtown dealer was out so we stopped at one a bit farther south and extras procured, we were on our way.

For just over 300 miles across the desert, we ranged on our way to the Utah sports mecca of Moab.  Even though the terrain wasn’t much different that what we saw in Idaho, it seemed less annoying this time.  Maybe I am now used to the nothingness of high desert.  Maybe it was the great weather or well maintained roads.  Whatever the reason, the miles flew by and after a short stop to pick up some lunch to eat on the road (who knew Subway made such good chopped salads?) we finally arrived at the destination du jour: Arches National Park.

We filled up our water bottles, donned our hiking boots and headed out to explore the vast expanse of red rocks and sand as fine as talcum powder.  Unfortunately, the Windows loop was closed and we were not up for the hike to Delicate Arch but we did hike to the view point.  And then we traveled the full length of the park to go see more arches – Landscape Arch was the goal but along the way we stopped at others including Pine Arch which was my favorite.  Probably because it was pretty shady and you could stand directly underneath it.

We got in the requisite amount of hiking then headed into Moab for supplies.  We picked up all the makings of a picnic supper (crackers, cheese, sausage, wine, etc.) and headed out to the Castle Valley where our B&B is located.  We had a lovely meal al fresco, hit the jacuzzi for a  relaxing soak before calling it a day.

Numbers for today:

• Miles driven: 305
• Steps: 11,278
• Floors: 29
• French lessons: 1 (Je voudrais quelque chose à manger)
• Number of French people we have run into on this trip: 5 zillion or at least it seems that way.

After a wonderful night’s sleep and a great breakfast, we hit the road again for the highlight of the day:  the Bonneville Salt Flats.  Any car nut, especially speed nuts, knows that the Bonneville Salt Flats are where many (most?) land speed records have been set.  It is a 40 square mile salt pan west of Salt Lake City which is a vast white wasteland – and somewhere Frank has always wanted to go.  So we did.

And it’s another post-apocalyptic setting, especially with the clouds and haze we had today.  But it was really cool.  And then we drove out on the flats – on the 10 miles stretch known as the Bonneville Speedway.  It was cool and eerie.

Then we realized that we were only 10 miles from the Nevada border…. well, we can’t leave a challenge unaccepted.  So we sped down the road to West Wendover, Nevada where we stopped at the Red Garter casino, spent a few minutes losing $5 on video poker (Frank won several times so he took longer to lose it all.), grabbed a cup of coffee and headed back toward town.

We made a quick stop at Great Salt Lake State Park to see the lake but it smelled pretty bad and the sand flies were unbearable so that didn’t last very long.  So then it was off to the other big attraction in SLC:  the Mormon temple.  It is very impressive and the visitor centers do a wonderful job making sure everyone understands that the Latter Day Saints worship Jesus.  We stopped at the tabernacle where the acoustics are unbelievable:  we could hear a pin drop all the way across the building.

Just to be fair, we also stopped by the Cathedral of the Madeline, the diocesan seat for the Catholic church in Utah.  The murals were impressive and the organ was fantastic.  I find myself still lighting a candle for my mother in every church I visit and this was no exception.  Then it was off to a fabulous dinner at a small plates restaurant, Eva,  before heading back to the Inn.  Frank managed to lose 3 games of pool to me before it was time to enjoy the jacuzzi bathtub and waste some time watching Lethal Weapon 4.

Numbers for today:

• Miles driven: 285
• Steps: 14,256
• States visited: 2 (UT, NV)
• French lesson: 1 (La rue est là bas)
• Best poker hand: straight flush (paid $12.50)