Second Jedediah Smith Trail 1824 — 1826

Day 22: September 12th, 2010 Wendover (Silver Island Range)

Map Wendover to Bonneville Salt Flats

Today I wake eventually up at my usual time. Breakfast will be at the Coco Palms restaurant in the Peppermill Casino, where I had my dinner yesterday. Also toady, the service is not the fastest. But at least my coffee is always refilled on time. Then I pay and walk over to my car. Now I find the casino exit without any searching around because I remembered this time where it is. Back at my car I mount my camera on the car pod.

BUS80/Wendover Blvd, West Wendover, State Line NV and UT

Then I drive over to the gas station in Utah. So I drive again back over the state line.

BUS80/Highway 58/Wendover Blvd, Wendover, UT

I–80, Wendover, UT

I–80, UT

Bonneville Speedway Access Rd, UT

Bonneville Speedway Access Rd, UT

Around half past ten I am ready to roll. First, I drive to the Bonneville Salt Flats Speedway.

Bonneville Salt Flats International Speedway, UT

Bonneville Salt Flats International Speedway, UT

Bonneville Salt Flats International Speedway, UT

Bonneville Salt Flats International Speedway, UT

Bonneville Salt Flats International Speedway, UT

Bonneville Speedway Access Rd, UT

Unfortunately, there is already an ongoing preparation work for an event on Tuesday and you are not allowed to drive on the Speedway. So I can only take pictures and video tape from the black top.

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Cairns, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Cairns, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

88 S10 Blazer 155111 Miles, Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Then I drive over to the Silver Island Loop Road. On this road you can really make good miles. Only when you get into the area of the Donner–Reed Pass, the road narrows and is getting more rugged.

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

But it develops to a real backroad not before entering the Crater Island Road, on which I plan to drive to the edge of this mountain range. To my surprise, the road continues far further than it was shown in my map. So I continue to drive. But the road is getting more and more wild and has deep washouts. In some spots I am only able to proceed in first gear and low range. Up to now, the temperature of my truck stayed in a healthy range. But it is warming up at the outside and the inclines ask for their tolls. I just get up another hill where I finally decide to stop.

In the meantime, the coolant water has passed 240 degrees and the engine as well as the transmission has this temperature level. There it is best to not proceed any further and I open the hood and step a bit on the gas that the alternator is able to deliver enough power for all my fans. Regardless, it still takes a quarter of an hour until the temperature very slowly starts to decrease. And it takes another quarter of an hour until the temperature is back to normal. Now I am able to turn off the engine and video tape the area. While the engine was cooling down before, I already took my pictures.

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

88 S10 Blazer, Crater Island Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Then I drive back to Donner–Reed Pass. The temperature starts to rise again, but on the better road, my truck should be able to cool down without stopping. Also now, it takes more than a quarter of an hour until the temperature starts to decrease. It seems like this is the normal behavior, if everything is heated up. However, it seems like the temperature gauge for my transmission return line has false readings. Allegedly, the temperature should be 150 degrees in the return line, while the outlet still has 240 degrees. That is not possible, something is wrong here. But it also cannot be a completely broken wire. In this case, the reading would be somewhere at one limit. It seems more like I have an additional resistance somewhere in the wiring, howsoever this would be possible.

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

88 S10 Blazer, Tire Change, Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, UT

Silver Island Loop Rd, Bonneville Salt Flats, UT

I stop a couple of times and wiggle on the wiring and open and close some connections. But it seems that this is a wire that runs directly through. Now I am really asking myself where the problem could be. Either the sensor itself is broken or the gauge. Maybe I can take out the additional dashboard and look at the rear if everything is correct there and I can also try to switch gauges. Then I know what is going on.

Just when I want to get back in my car I realize that my rear left tire is almost flat! Not again please, I already had this at the mine! But it seems that air is flowing out very slowly. So I quickly search for my pump and pump up the tire. Just when I am working on this, an SUV stops by with two guys and ask if everything is okay. I tell them that I slowly loose air and must either regularly pump up or change my tire. Then they drive on, because I don’t need any help right now.

When I reach 20psi, I already here a whistling sound just from the middle of the tread surface! But I am not able to see anything there. So it seems nothing is stuck in there. Probably, a sharp stone has punctuated my tire or something else punctured it and is already fallen out or never got stuck in there. I just have no clue where this could have happened. First I think that it might had happened on this offroad part . But then I doubt I would have made it this far. Maybe it was at the spot where I stopped for taking pictures and checked my gauge wiring to figure out what’s going on. Anyway, I am not able to get above 20psi. Therefore it is now time to change the tire.

I collect my tools, then I start working. Where I have to position my car jack, I already learned at the beginning of my trip when I changed my flat tire at the mine. So I make good progress and half an hour later I am back on the road. It seems like I will need a tire dealer who will put in a hose. With this big difference in tire threads, I don’t want to drive too far to not damage my differential.

Leppy Pass Rd, UT

Leppy Pass Rd, UT

Leppy Pass Rd, UT

Like yesterday, I drive on Leppy Pass Road over Leppy Pass.

Due to my tire breakdown, I arrive way later in Wendover as expected. I put my stuff into the room and check again my transmission. What really puzzles me is that I always have small bubbles on the dip stick, even with the correct oil level. Well, if the level is correct. Then I copy again my videos and drive over to Coco Palms in West Wendover, Nevada.

Also toady I find the restaurant within the casino without searching around and receive again a decent booth. Only my server is extremely slow and absolutely short in words, almost impolite. Seems like my tip will not be as big as usual. But I receive my second Pepsi without waiting for too long and also without ice. At least this works!

The grilled chicken breast with shrimps really tastes good and you receive a fortune cookie with it. Around half past seven I pay and drive back to my motel in Wendover, Utah. There, I first check my video taping, copy the pictures, write my diary and think about how to drive on. It is probably the best to not drive too far remote. Let’s see, if I will be able to find a tire store around here. Otherwise I take the tour south of the Salt Lake and check either in Salt Lake City or Ogden. So I must now prepare a whole new trip South today…

It’s really great that it is now almost eleven in the evening! In Ogden is close to the Motel 6 a Les Schwab, a Pep Boys and also a computer store. Let’s see, if I am not able to find something around here then it will (hopefully) work out over there. Maybe I can drop the tire at the shop in the evening and pick it up the next morning.

In the meantime it is already half past eleven. Most likely it will be midnight when I am ready to go to bed today…

The next day is in preparation…