Jeff and Sabrina took us to the Natural History museum of Utah today. The building is architecturally impressive, sheathed with local copper. The interior moved the visitor through five levels in a circular, open pattern. The dinosaur display was quite something. It included several new species of dinosaurs recently discovered in Utah.
Ken and Jeff and I did a bike ride this morning on the D & RGW Rail Trail in Layton. The original rail line was the Denver and Rio Grande Western, which linked Denver with Salt Lake City, running "Through the Rockies, not around them." The trail is relatively new, and the surface is smooth. The part we rode runs through farm fields rapidly being converted to suburban developments. Jeff was riding a Trek mountain bike that he's had for years and used to enjoy riding on outings with his dad. Our bikes on the other hand are still practically brand new.
Jeff got up early this morning to put the brisket on to smoke all day. He had prepped it by injecting it with marinade a couple of days ago and put it aside to diffuse the flavors throughout. Today he hovered over the smoker, keeping it in the desired temperature range and moving the smoker so the mesquite smoke would surround the brisket optimally.
Park City is practically next door to Salt Lake City (give or take a few mountains), and Layton is just north of SLC. So it was only just over an hour's drive to Park City to have lunch with our friend, Jean. She had noticed our Facebook post about a hike in the Wasatch Front and immediately realized how close we must be. Park City is one of her favorite places on earth, and she comes here every summer.
We had a great time today with Jeff and Sabrina and Karma at the Oktoberfest at a ski resort southeast of Salt Lake City. Karma is Jeff and Sabrina's fur baby. He is still a puppy at 4 1/2 months. Jeff had free tickets courtesy of his active military duty.
We listened to German music and drank German beer and enjoyed some German cuisine at the Halle (a large dining tent).
Mid August is not a very popular time to visit this stunning area. It's miles of open desert and canyon lands, and today the sun was beating down. But this week is when we have an opportunity, so we headed out to Kuna, a town southeast of Boise. We were expecting to find a visitor center there. We called the BLM number only to learn that the visitor center is in Boise and closed today, so we just headed south to Dedication Point. We stopped along the way at a group of information signs. Later we came upon a memorial to two volunteer firefighters who were killed fighting a wildfire nearby.
The deep canyon of the Snake River, with its crags and crevices and thermal updrafts, is home to the greatest concentration of nesting birds of prey in North America – and perhaps, the world. The BLM’s mission at the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (NCA) is to preserve this remarkable wildlife habitat, while providing for other compatible uses of the land. Some 800 pairs of hawks, owls, eagles and falcons come each spring to mate and raise their young. The NCA is "nature in the rough," with few public facilities. However, the birds and their unique environment offer rich rewards to those willing to experience the NCA on its own terms and who have patience to fit into the natural rhythms of life in this special place.Read more!
The National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center in Baker City is one of several memorials to the largest mass migration in American history.
NPS
Flagstaff HillNational Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center - Baker City, Oregon
This 23,000 square-foot interpretive center atop Flagstaff Hill overlooks nearly seven miles of well-preserved Oregon Trail ruts that extend across Virtue Flat southeast of Flagstaff Hill. This arid trail segment, where emigrants fought their way through shoulder-tall sagebrush, tested weary emigrants who had endured four or five difficult days ascending Burnt River. In places, several ruts run parallel, suggesting some teams pulled alongside or ahead of others in the push to reach the Powder River.
But travelers were also greeted with their first site of the Promised Land beyond. From atop Flagstaff Hill, the Blue Mountains beckoned in the distance, assuring emigrants that their long journey from the Missouri would soon end in the long awaited Willamette Valley.
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Today we drove to La Grande to ride part of the Grande Tour Scenic Bikeway. The entire route is a 134 mile figure 8. We rode out to Union, OR, and back for a total of 36 miles. That didn't sound like too long a ride, but by the time we finished, we were definitely ready to be out of the saddle.
Oregon has the newest national natural landmark, just designated the end of June: Mount Howard-East Peak National Natural Landmark in northeastern Oregon, in the Walllowa Mountains. We set out today to take a tram up Mount Howard and hike near the summit. One slight glitch: the tram was shut down for repairs and not expected to open today (no telling when it will reopen, and with the ancient machinery susceptible to breakdowns, we won't be back).
There's lots more to see and do in this lovely area. First we drove to Lake Wallowa along a portion of the Hell's Canyon Scenic Byway. We stopped at this little county park at the north end of the lake to take in the view. The area is called the "little Alps" because of the picturesque snow capped mountains (we figure there must be more snow other times of the year....).
Elgin is home to a Boise Cascade facility that makes plywood and studs. On our bike ride around town, Ken spotted these trucks today.
