Moab Adventure Day 2

Tues Oct 22, 2019:

Winnemucca, NV to Provo, UT

Fred and Mike were up bright and early. I was not 😁

We had a leisurely morning and enjoyed our oatmeal breakfast. 20 years ago Fred would have been in task-master mode, keeping us to a strict schedule and pushing everyone for a super early departure time. But these days, he is so much more relaxed. Now it’s just my own neurotic impulse to constantly hustle from task to task that I struggle to curb. I have to keep reminding myself to slow down and enjoy the ride. He reminds me often 😜

We were pretty efficient with packing up camp and were back on the road towards Moab by 9:45am. We stopped for lunch in Elko, NV. And made sandwiches in a Walmart parking lot. The people watching was very entertaining. As we sat and ate inside the RV, we created interesting storylines to match the shoppers. Mike is pretty good at making funny voices to go along with the stories. He favors the classic Boston accent of the character Cliff Claven from the TV show Cheers. It’s pretty funny.

We also Googled searched while we ate to see what kept such a tiny town alive in the middle of nowhere. Turns out it’s a major gold mining location and produces more gold than all but four countries in the world (if Wikipedia is accurate). I am always blown away to learn that mining is still such a big industry in America.

Mike drove for a few hours after lunch while Fred napped in the back. We passed through the salt flats and into Utah. We also crossed into the Mountain Time Zone and lost an hour of the day. Mike was quite taken by the beautiful scenery. It’s his first time traveling through this part of the country.

We pulled into camp in Provo, UT around 6:45pm. It was already getting dark. The trees were rustling with bright fall colors swaying in the crisp air. It really was a postcard in motion.

We had brought all the supplies to make beef tacos, but the raw meat didn’t look so appetizing after a day in a questionably cold refrigerator. So we opted for more pasta goulash for dinner.

We watched game one of the World Series while we ate and then sat around chatting until bed. Today’s drive was a long one. It took us about 8 hours, so we were all pretty tired by the end of it.

Tomorrow will be a short drive into Moab. We should get there in the early afternoon and have some time to explore before dark. Fred is very excited to be so close!