What's that? You're wondering where I went? Am I still stranded in Utah?
Nope! Just good old procrastination with some covid blues thrown in for good measure.
If, like
@jose34 , you are wondering where I've been, eager for the next installation of Season 1 of Traveling with Shmè, you're in luck. I'm back, and slightly worse than ever.
We last left me doing laundry in Salt Lake City. I'm happy to report that I have done laundry since then. Actually, I pay a nice lady named Eunice to do it for me. But that's a different story for a different time.
Tuesday, September 1st, 2020. I woke up, had a coffee, and saw 5 clients over Zoom from 8am to 12:30pm. I missed morning prayers at the Shul of Latter Day Saints, so I prayed on my own.
After heading due South the day before, today was all about West. Mostly. My first stop was the Lake for which the city is named.
Great Salt Lake
It's nice. It was hard to find.
I mean, the Lake was easy to find. It was hard to find the turnoff for the lake vantage point. After lots of
fumfering, I found Great Salt Lake State Park, where I had to pay 10 bucks for parking.
Verdict: go for the view, leave quickly for the
smell.
Back on the road, heading due West to my next stop: the Bonneville Salt Flats.
Imagine a beach without the water. And, instead of sand, it's salt. Stepping out onto the flats is a very cool experience. They go on and on as far as you can see. It's desolate and quiet. And the feel of the sand beneath my feet is solid, with a little bit of give that let me know that it wasn't quite regular ground. They have auto racing here. I'd love to see that.
About 10 more miles West, and I was at the Nevada border.
I discovered that it's pronounced Ne-VAAA-dah (like the A in apple). Check
this link if you're still not sure how to say it.
It was time to leave the safety and familiarity of the I-80 behind, and venture southwest on a little highway called State Route 93 Alternate. Crossing into Pacific Time, I lost service. It was just me, Fezzik, and a two lane highway with a dotted yellow line down the middle, whizzing past sun-baked earth covered in scraggly desert growth, like a 17-year old bochur trying to grow a beard.
It was glorious.
To break things up, I stopped at a little town with a Jewish name: Ely, Nevada.
The elevation is 6435, which coincidentally is the code to get into the local shul.
Just kidding. The code is 613. 6, then 1 and 3 together. Also, there is no shul.
Just a little dry desert humor.
Good times.
The 93 ALT ended at Ely, so I continued my southwesterly trek on Route 6. I couldn't find a good place to stay, so I contacted my trusty concierge
@JuryDuty who came through in a big way. More on that soon. (Whatsapp was really helpful here - my texts and voice notes got through when I had little spurts of cell service even when I couldn't make a phone call.)
On this leg of the trip, Fezzik and I passed a milestone - 100k miles!
Before
Yay!
Desert sunset...
I landed in a little town called Tonopah, on Route 6, and headed to the Mizpah Hotel recommended by my concierge. It was founded in 1907, and restored to its former glory in 2011. It has a really cool, old-timey feel.
Of course, it's Nevada so there are some gambling devices.
Just one drink before bed.
Good night
Lights out!
Totals: A little over 6 hours driving, a little over 400 miles driven, a little overcompensating for not having posted in a while.
More to come! Especially if you nudge me.