July 24: After busting out 41.6 miles to Delta the other day, a well deserved rest, in my opinion, had been earned. The two days off had also been beneficial in preparing ourselves for the next leg of the journey. As I may have mentioned earlier, Delta is the final main service area (excluding the little community of Hinkley, UT 5 miles west of Delta) until the Nevada border. It was necessary to load up on enough food and water to last us the 89 miles to the border and, so, in the course of our two day break we checked to make sure we had all the essentials before heading gout into the desolation. The morning of the 24th started out with a gentle sprinkle of rain at 7:00AM that tapered off within the hour. Luckily for us, cloud cover remained until about 11AM before dissipating to expose the already intense heat of the sun. At the same time as this, the desert landscape transformed into that of a wasteland. Our only natural sources of shade under the small juniper and cottonwood trees of central and eastern Utah had vanished. Farms were no more as were the irrigating aqueducts that fed them. The land had a beautiful, yet sinister appearance to it. Mountains due west tempt the weary traveler while peripheral vision catches a glimpse of the spontaneous dust devils tossing around earth and the bone-dry remains of what used to be plant life. It is indeed a different world out here. Where Eastern Utah resembles that of the surface of Mars, the area of the west could easily be compared to that of the surface of Venus. There were no interactions during the bulk of todays walk; however, a gentleman in a gas station back in Delta informed us that today is Utahs Pioneer Day honoring Brigham Young and the Mormon settlement. Over in the little town of Hinkley, due west if Delta, there was a large parade about to begin as tradition for this state-wife holiday. While checking out a few floats, I had the privilege to meet a woman who inquired about my travels. Once I explained what I was doing, she informed me that she too lost her brother by suicide. It made my day to be able to speak to this woman and hear a bit of her story. With this being said, even as I approach the Loneliest road in the country, I hope this small interaction can show many of you who read this that you are NEVER alone even in the times where it may certainly seem that way.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Jul 2014 23:48:49 +0000
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