Day 6: Craig, CO to Delta, UT

Special thanks to my parents, Mike and Kathy, for helping me out with the journey! Love you guys! Hope you are enjoying reading, and not worrying too much!

Miles traveled: 385.6
Total miles traveled: 1,767.3

---

Today began in Craig, CO. It was a beautiful morning as I left at around 7:00am, heading westward on US-40. I met some High Rockies Fire Fighters as I was leaving, where they mentioned it was likely going to be a rough day for them with scattered thunderstorms in the area all day. I thanked them for what they do, noting that I have a friend who just finished a tour of duty in Nevada fighting fires (to which they said something to the effect of “he should keep being awesome”).

Speaking of rain, I noticed some in the distance about 20 minutes into the drive on US-40. If you’ve never seen rain fall about 15 miles away from where you are, its is beautiful. Absolutely fascinating to watch. It’s kind of like a jellyfish, with tendrils hanging down.

So I spoke with mother nature, reminding her I was having a fabulous time exploring her, and doing good deeds such as picking up trash or helping people as I was going on my journey. I asked if it would be too much trouble to allow me to go between the rain bands.

…and she trolled me. It sprinkled. Nothing major. Thank goodness.

By the time I reached Dinosaur National Monument, it was clear and sunny again. Because I was on a tight schedule, and the drive up the canyon to the fossils was 30 miles, I opted to stop at the Welcome Center on 40, and then headed out.

I continued on to Dinosaur, Colorado. A gentleman there suggested that I definitely check the monument out, as they a) have a real T-Rex fossil there, and built a building around some of the larger remains. One day.

Next up was the Utah State Border.

The northeastern part of Utah is Dinosaur Crazy, as evidenced by Vernal, UT:

US-40 rolled on, through scrubby brushlands, until I reached Strawberry Lake. Magically, it transformed on the western edge, to more of the Alpine setting I had left the previous day. Plenty of hills too…which Donna did not like. 40 mph in 3rd gear while people want to go around you isn’t all that fun.

The road continued to Heber City, UT. A nice little town – the Western End is was absolutely gorgeous! The lake was large, full of people enjoying the sunny day. Just past the town there was a very scenic waterfall (which I couldn’t take a picture of, due to traffic).

The road goes ever on, they say, as did this one…to Provo, UT. I took a nice break at The Scooter Lounge in Provo, and chatted with the gentleman up front (I think his name was Dan?). We talked about Genuine Scooters, about the long trip, and just scooter-nerded out. It was awesome!

Then the final leg of the trip for the day: Provo to Delta, UT. The first third was alright, scenic, through a lot of farmland. Through the dwindling mining town of Eureka. I asked the clerk at the gas station I filled up at if it was supposed to rain, noting some clouds well in the distance. She said storms were supposed to come tonight, but I should be in the clear.

…she was wrong. About halfway between Eureka and Delta, I noticed more of those “Jellyfish” rain bands. Mother Nature and I had a chat again, similar to the one we had before.

As I got closer to the rain, I saw a flash of cloud-to-cloud lightning. It also looked like the rain was getting a little wider, but the path still seemed ok.

Then the first drops fell. Then more…quickly enough that I didn’t have a chance to get my rain gear on. A bolt of lightning, traveling cloud-to-cloud, but arcing low in my opinion, flashed overhead. I looked to my left, and then to my right – there was absolutely no cover, and none in the distance. I had to press on. Delta was only 15 or so miles….I could make it, right?

Then the wind came. It got stronger and stronger, and worse yet, it was a cross breeze, blowing me from right to left while I pushed on. I tried to pull into some cover at a house, but the owners dogs were out, and rushed to greet me. I didn’t stay to see if they were friendly. A mile further up the road, an abandoned gas station. Perfect, I pulled under the awning, and waited for the wind to die down…about 10 minutes.

The wind died down, and I hurried on to Delta, arriving around 7:30pm. Rest.

It’s supposed to storm some time tonight. I’m going to rest, because tomorrow is another long day.

US-50. The loneliest road in America. I’ve got my water, my gatorade, my extra gasoline. I’m ready.

Also took a few panoramas. Don’t recall when in the trip I did (likely early on), but let’s put them here just because.

---

Want to Help? That would be super-cool!

Than trip should take an estimated 10 days maximum, and roughly 3,000 miles. That will take a bit of a toll on the ol’ wallet, so I am happy to take any donations my generous friends would like to offer. For reference:

$3 will get me approximately 70 miles closer to my goal.
$15 will feed me for the day
$35 will get me one night at a Tent Campsite at a KOA Campsite
$40 will buy me one tire when I get to my destination (as the rear tire will likely be spent by then!)
$75 will get me one night at a hotel (and more importantly, a shower!)

If you would like to donate, feel free to leave a comment (they are private until I approve them, or you can email me at bryrhoey at gmail) and I can set that up, or you can send me money via PayPal! 🙂

If you live along the route, and don’t mind me camping/crashing/eating with you, I’d appreciate that too!