Winnemucca-Salt Lake City Pix

Yesterday Susie described Interstate 80 from Reno to Winnemucca as boring. Today it was not boring, especially for the driver. Interstate 80 has a posted speed limit of 75 miles per hour. The truck pulling the trailer can maintain that speed, albeit at an increase in fuel consumption. Conditions today made it a challenge to maintain the legal limit. Winnemucca is located at an elevation of 4,300 feet. Leaving Winnemucca we slowly rose to a 1,000 foot higher plateau and we accomplished that at the speed limit. Then the "fun" began. We started climbing through a series of mountain passes, the highest at 7,000 feet. These were long grades and our speed dropped to 45 miles per hour with the engine struggling to maintain that. Once we got into Utah around Wendover, we found ourselves facing very strong head winds with gusts up to 45 miles per hour. Even on a level road, it was difficult to maintain 65 miles per hour, let alone the speed limit. I estimate that our fuel consumption was 20% below our already low 9 miles per gallon.

The terrain between Winnemucca and the Nevada/Utah border changed as mentioned above. We saw more hills and more livestock along the road. There are very few towns between Winnemucca and the state border. Many of those that are so small that there are the exit signs state that there are no services available. Driving this part of the country requires constant attention to the fuel gauge. Today the biggest gap between services was 65 miles (yesterday was 115 miles).

The one constant we had on the route, at least the Nevada portion, was the Humboldt River and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. The Humbold River left us before we got to Utah only to be replaced by the salt flats. As soon as you cross the last pass at Wendover, you see the first and best known of the salt flats, the Bonneville Salt Flats. This is where the world land speed records were set on a 80 foot wide,10 mile long track. The rest of the trip to Salt Lake City was along these flats and the Great Salt Lake. A number of salt processing plants are located within sight of the road.

Yesterday Susie described Interstate 80 from Reno to Winnemucca as boring. Today it was not boring, especially for the driver. Interstate 80 has a posted speed limit of 75 miles per hour. The truck pulling the trailer can maintain that speed, albeit at an increase in fuel consumption. Conditions today made it a challenge to maintain the legal limit. Winnemucca is located at an elevation of 4,300 feet. Leaving Winnemucca we slowly rose to a 1,000 foot higher plateau and we accomplished that at the speed limit. Then the "fun" began. We started climbing through a series of mountain passes, the highest at 7,000 feet. These were long grades and our speed dropped to 45 miles per hour with the engine struggling to maintain that. Once we got into Utah around Wendover, we found ourselves facing very strong head winds with gusts up to 45 miles per hour. Even on a level road, it was difficult to maintain 65 miles per hour, let alone the speed limit. I estimate that our fuel consumption was 20% below our already low 9 miles per gallon. The terrain between Winnemucca and the Nevada/Utah border changed as mentioned above. We saw more hills and more livestock along the road. There are very few towns between Winnemucca and the state border. Many of those that are so small that there are the exit signs state that there are no services available. Driving this part of the country requires constant attention to the fuel gauge. Today the biggest gap between services was 65 miles (yesterday was 115 miles). The one constant we had on the route, at least the Nevada portion, was the Humboldt River and the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. The Humbold River left us before we got to Utah only to be replaced by the salt flats. As soon as you cross the last pass at Wendover, you see the first and best known of the salt flats, the Bonneville Salt Flats. This is where the world land speed records were set on a 80 foot wide,10 mile long track. The rest of the trip to Salt Lake City was along these flats and the Great Salt Lake. A number of salt processing plants are located within sight of the road.

	The Bonneville Salt Flats are seen from a rest area on I 80. The mountains in the background are more than 7 miles away. The flats run for miles along the highway. The state of Utah kindly provides an elevated platform at the rest area for photographers. The rest area also has a fenced in pet walking area so that the dogs are kept off the flats where the salt would burn their paws. Anyone wishing to walk on the flats can do so but is advised to wash their shoes in a special wash stations.