The Donner Party and Sentinel Chickens

nner Wendover, Nevada

We've covered some territory in the last few days. The RV is back in Moab, Utah. We drove the Toyota 100 miles over the Great Salt Lake desert to Wendover, Nevada to see my brother. He took us out into the desert to see a little lake or spring that percolates up at the base of a mountain range.


You can tell a poison spring in the desert by the lack of insects and other life. Many of them are full of arsenic or selenium. This one was full of little fish and mosquitoes. They put "sentinel chickens" near some of the springs so they can test them for West Nile virus.


Later we walked out onto the Bonneville Salt Flats. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) prepares a strip 80 feet wide by ten miles long for world land speed record attempts every year after the salt dries. When the salt is wet, it's like driving on porridge.

We found a place 25 miles out in the desert on an empty gravel road where the Donner party crossed the salt flats and drove their wagons up over a low pass. That's the party that got stranded in the mountains for the winter (because they got stuck in the salt and delayed) and revived the practice of cannibalism.





After we left Wendover we went in to Salt Lake City. We went to Temple Square and saw a two-hour movie about Joseph Smith, who founded the Mormon religion. The movie showed Smith finding a loose-leaf binder filled with gold pages. The binder was full of revelations. It was in a language that only Smith could understand. Smith established the Mormon religion and moved his congregation around the country (New York, Illinois, Missouri). Apparently the Mormons were persecuted everywhere and Smith was killed by intolerant neighbors in Carthage, Missouri. Then Brigham Young took over the church leadership and moved the Mormons to Salt Lake City. Mormons have reputation as hard-working people who shun alcohol, gambling and tobacco. They have a strong evangelical tradition.

Then we caught a plane and flew here (North Carolina) to visit our six grandchildren.

The World’s Largest Antique

Lake Havasu City, Arizona – January 17, 2007

We saw and drove over the world’s largest antique today. It is the London Bridge in the Arizona desert. It hardly seems right to buy the heritage of a formerly great empire and use it to support a shopping center. The whole thing is embarrassingly American. I wonder if Captain Bligh’s tombstone in London might also be up for grabs. It’s my personal favorite London landmark.



Yesterday we drove a 100 mile stretch of historic old Route 66 looking for photo opportunities. There are still a few small businesses trading on the nostalgia of this historical period. Brolean has recently submitted a nice Route 66 entry to the H2G2 edited guide.

When Perseus cut off Medusa's head, the red winged horse, Pegasus, sprang spontaneously from the blood soaked ground. Rollie Free drove a Vincent Black Lightning with a Pegasus on the gas tank to a world record speed in excess of 150 MPH in September, 1948, on the Bonneville Salt Flats...he was wearing a bathing suit..I got my first bicycle that month.

We drive old Route 66 between Kingman and Seligman, Arizona. The map shows a 75 mile gravel road to the north leading to the Grand Canyon at a spot tourists don’t often visit. What the hell. We have a Toyota rental car while our Toyota is being repaired. We decide to do it. 25 miles down the gravel road into the Haulapai Indian Reservation we stop a friendly tribal policeman and ask advice about the road.. He says the road turns to mud in five miles and suggests that a four wheel drive truck might be a more appropriate vehicle. We turn back.


Here are a few more Route 66 images, including a blown ‘56 Chevy V-8 engine with two four barrels and some old Ford flathead V-8s. My first car was a ’50 Ford I bought for $50 in 1959.


In tennis today, Mrs. Phred and I played three sets near the London Bridge. Scores were 6-1, 6-1 and 6-2., her favor. I make some good shots, deep return of serves she can’t touch, but I’m still hopelessly outclassed. Even a blind pig finds an occasional truffle.

The repairs on the Toyota are not covered by Warranty. It seems that the original dealership improperly installed an aftermarket security system that shorted out the headlight assembly switch. I’m writing to the “Toyota Experience” center to request binding 3rd party arbitration on the repair cost. If the arbitration costs are more than the repair, there is still a point to be made here.