Second Jedediah Smith Trail 1824 — 1826

Day 20: September 10th, 2010 Green River — Ogden

Map Green River to Ogden

Because it was already very late yesterday evening (it was one in the morning yet when I went to bed!), I slept in today due to my ear plugs. Just before eight I wake up and get myself ready for the day. Then I drive over to the Krazy Moose for breakfast. Breakfast is quite okay, only the bacon is not as great as the last couple of days. But I am now really spoiled, because they have been always superior!

BUS80/BUS30/W Flaming Gorge Way, Green River, WY

I–80, Green River, WY

During payment I tell my server that I have also been here last year and she tells me, that she can even remember me! Next I drive over to the next gas station. This time, no Sheriff is gassing up at the pump next to me like last year. Around eleven I am ready to hit the road in direction of the Interstate.

I–80, WY

First, I drive back on I–80 to Evanston.

BUS80/BUS189/Bear River Dr, Evanston, WY

There I turn onto Highway 89.

Highway 89, WY

Highway 89 and 16, State Line WY and UT

On this one I continue to the state line of Utah. There, Highway 89 changes to Highway 16.

Highway 16, UT

Next, I drive through Woodruff in Utah.

Little Creek Rd, UT

Then I continue up to Randolph. There I turn onto the small Little Creek Road.

Cattle, Little Creek Rd, UT

New Canyon Rd, UT

Pronghorn, New Canyon Rd, UT

New Canyon Rd, UT

This road takes me to New Canyon Road and the forest roads over the mountain. The beginning of this drive is still pretty relaxed.

FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

FR20058/New Canyon Rd, Cache National Forest, UT

FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

88 S10 Blazer, FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

Deer, FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

But soon the number of rocks in the road start to increase. Just before 2pm I find a nice spot for my brief lunch break. All in all, I am still good in time. Then I continue on the forest roads.

FR20058/New Canyon Rd, UT

FR121/Goring Corral Rd, UT

In the end I decide to throw in 4LO — just a the right moment because from now on it is getting way steeper. The road takes me over a couple of passes and up to 7500ft.

FR121/Goring Corral Rd, UT

Laketown Rd, UT

Strawberry Valley Rd, UT

Sometimes I drive on good forest roads, sometimes on roads with deep washouts.

Strawberry Valley Rd, UT

FR105/Saddle Creek, UT

These are roads I definitely don’t want to drive when it is raining.

FR105/Hells Hollow, UT

FR008/N Lochwood Dr, UT

FR007/Temple Fork Rd, UT

Even now, they are still a bit slippery from the last rain. And my tire threads are no longer the best. Hopefully it is not getting worse. But I am lucky and am even able to drive through the puddles without any issues.

FR007/Temple Fork Rd, UT

Now I drive once again for a short stretch through deep washouts and forests before I finally reach Highway 89. The weather was most of the time pretty cloudy with some sun from time to time and in the morning it was just a couple of degrees above freezing. While on the road, the temperatures were up to 60 degrees. But up on the mountains, the temperatures were only around 40 degrees. In the distance, you can see snow in the mountains. I am really wondering, if the snow will hit me this year due to being so late this time!

Highway 89, UT

But for now, I first drive on Highway 89 to Logan. Unfortunately, my storage card in my camera is already full and I don’t want to stop now anymore to change the card. Also the storage card for my video camera is almost full. But it should be enough for the distance to Logan. Logan Canyon is really beautiful, but there is really a lot of traffic. And with my old truck I am not able to run around the curves like in the past. There it really doesn’t help if people just drive one inch behind my ass…

A little bit annoyed I arrive in Logan. Somehow I have the impression, that everyone is driving way more than aggressive than in the past. Eventually, I arrive at the Super 8. There is already a long waiting line, maybe because it is Friday. But when it is my turn, the reception lady tells me that they are already booked. She even has recognized me, but that doesn’t really help me now. There is no chance to find anything here in Logan because there is a convention and bicycle race. Everything is totally booked! My best chance is to try it in Brigham City. Okay, then I must drive over to this town. Once, I had planned the Howard Johnson on my trip there.

But when I arrive there, already this one is booked! Around here is a Beach Party. Therefore everything is booked! But I could drive on to Ogden. He immediately calls the Days Inn over there and books a room for me for $55. This is okay. So I drive on. He suggested that I should stay on Highway 89, which turns out to be a real bullshit because of all the traffic lights.

Finally I arrive at the Days Inn and receive my room — however, it costs now $65 and almost $75 including tax! This really pisses me off, that is almost a ripoff! If I would have known this, I would have driven on to the Motel 6! Also the rooms are pretty chaotic to find and for the first time I park my car at a completely wrong spot and must walk for quite a distance to reach my room.

The room itself is nice, but the door and remote control are extremely old. Anyhow, that room is definitely not worth the price! Okay, well, I first get my laptop out and copy my videos. Before, I check where I can go for dinner tonight and find a Texas Roadhouse not too far away. This is the place to go!

Quickly, I type in the GPS coordinates. Then I leave. I am even able to find it without any searching around! But I must really get used to the driving style around here. Everything is way more aggressive due to the high traffic. This is something I am no longer used to! The next shock is the parking lot. This one is busy like hell! My fears get confirmed when I enter the restaurant: The waiting is around 15 to 25 minutes. And there is also no free spot at the bar! Therefore I must wait!

Eventually it is my turn and I even receive a nice and big table! My server is a little bit interested in my trips, but more this regular, not real interest. The steak is again very good and I am completely stuffed! The Coke service is really great. My glass is not even emptied down to a quarter when I already receive the next full glass of Coke!

I return the favor by a good tip. And because I have never been to this Texas Roadhouse before, I receive “Pringles” or something with a similar name for free. This is really getting too much food for me and I skip the peanuts this time. When I am back at my motel it is almost 10pm!

This will turn out to be a long evening, which I want to support with some coffee. Here, I have the choice between decaf (like everywhere) and — well, again decaf! That is really great! And then my first cup even leaks! Well, so I fill it quickly into a second cup before I start checking my video taping. It seems like the autofocus of my camera even works pretty well with backlight situations. If there is not too much dirt on the windshield, it should really work out.

After I have checked all my videos, I copy them on my backup hard drive. In the meantime, I rip the next CD. Let’s see if I will be able to rip them all until I am back home. All in all, I will need Internet to do so, which means no Motel 6 will work. Then I write my emails and listen to my next CD. However, the Alan Jackson CD really surprises me, which is called “Precious Memories”. These are all Christmas songs! Well, maybe I will see my first snow soon, then it would fit…

Finally, I must copy all the pictures from my camera. In the meantime, I already delete the videos on my video camera and continue working on my bookkeeping. Then I must adapt the trip for tomorrow. I think, I will skip the part that runs around the northern end of the mountain range from Logan and drive directly on I–15 to the exit of Highway 83. Then I will not arrive too late in Wendover. Speaking of late, it is already past 1am! Seems like I will not be in bed before half past one, really great!

The next day is in preparation…

Sights
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General
Breakfast: Krazy Moose, Green River
Dinner: Texas Roadhouse, Ogden
Motel: Days Inn, Ogden
Distance: 228 miles

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