Utah, Through the Mountains

I crossed into Utah going 76 miles an hour, flying down an interstate taking me out of Wyoming's southern basins, but things changed and my speed slowed shortly after flying over the border. It was almost as if somebody decreed, "This is Utah, for Chrissakes! Put the damn lunar landscape out of your mind right now!" (This would have happened before the Mormons hit town, of course. Such language!) I-80 traffic weaved in and out of shortish red clay-colored spires and mini-canyons. It was a startling and welcome change.

This brings up a beef I've developing with Rand McNally. I don't know who has the job of deciding which roads get the "scenic" dots on their maps, but that person needs a job review. Rand McNally gets some roads right, but how can they call that St. Joseph to Iowa road scenic and still sleep well at night? I-80 going into Utah absolutely deserves dots, as does US-189 heading from 80 through Hebner City to Orem but they don't appear on the map. My drive through northern Utah today was the best of the whole trip, although the photos I took by holding the camera out of the sunroof don't do it justice. The gathering rain clouds also hurt the pics, I think. Here they are anyway.

I couldn't frame a photo announcing to you my arrival at Brigham Young University that showed the breathtaking mountains towering behind the campus. The university buildings are completely forgettable, but the backdrop is unreal. Maybe you can Google it to see what I mean.

Driving south from Provo on I-15, I came across this, prefaced by an earlier sign that explained that this is an "experimental" speed zone. An 80 miles per hour speed limit?! Really?!? I will say this, however: I have long assumed that no matter where you set the speed limit, most drivers will go five to ten miles per hour faster, and many will go higher than that. These 75 and 80 speed limits have proven me wrong. In the 75 zones, I have gone the speed limit, and this is right in line with all of the other cars. I was afraid of going 80 for a little while, and everybody else seemed to be too. Finally, after a couple of cars slid past, I pushed the Mazda a little more and, again, nobody broke the posted limit. I'm not saying that eastern highways ought to bump their speeds higher--we don't have the long, straight, and relatively empty roads back home--but the difference in driver behavior is interesting. Then again, I did see a sign announcing how many drivers died on I-80 in Utah last year (18) and how many have died this year (11), and I've never seen a death count anywhere else ever.

Finally, two of my gentlest of readers have been asking me about loneliness on the road. So far, I'm feeling completely fine and enjoying my time alone. I drive for as long as I want, I stop when and where I want, and I listen to what I want. I've only been gone four days, and I call home with regularity. I guess the best early test of how well I travel alone will come tomorrow, when I head out on "The Loneliest Road in America," US-50 through Nevada. As for travel weariness, ask me when I'm heading back through Indiana on the way home, and I bet the story will be different.

For tomorrow's desert crossing, I got all of the Mazda's fluids checked at a Jiffy Lube in Provo, and I've got a few extra jugs of water safely stowed in the back seat. I'm still a little nervous, but I'm ready to go.