Michigan to Utah: 10/9/16 - 10/15/16

I'm originally from Michigan, growing up on the east side of the state just north of Detroit and about four years ago moving to the west side just south of Grand Rapids. Work brought me out there, but I never really ended up liking it. About a month ago I interviewed and secured a great position at the University of Utah Health Care in Salt Lake City. I had the option of shipping my truck across the country to Utah, but I figured that would be no fun so I ended up taking a road trip to really get out and see things. Once I made it to Utah, it took me some time to get a place to live so while I was waiting on that I managed to explore various areas and get to know my new state a little better.

This is roughly the route I took, stopping off on the first day in North Platte, Nebraska, then onto the Rocky Mountain National Park and ending up in Steamboat Springs for the night, then onto my new home in Holladay, UT.



Here I am getting ready to leave home, my wife and I's entire life packed into a 16ft shipping container and the back of my pickup...it's times like this I'm thankful I got the long bed.



It was dark out until I hit Iowa and since I found nothing of actual note going through Iowa and Nebraska since I'm not really down with looking at corn, cows, or big empty plains, I didn't stop and take and pictures. I did learn Nebraska drivers are nuts though and travel at roughly the speed of sound once outside a city. I kept the truck at about 87 mph and was getting passed like I was standing still.

I was briefly in Wyoming and it was dark when I came through there too. I am defiantly going to come back though. When the sun started to come up, the state really began taking shape and looking really cool.

Entering Colorado, my first stop was the Rocky Mountain National Park. I was a little disappointed that Old Fall River Road was closed due to maintenance, but was glad that Trail Ridge was open after apparently some weather related closures. The road was awesome and the views spectacular. I also found out really quick that the altitude got the better of me since I'd never been that high up before while on land.





I got stopped in the park for about 40 minutes too when they had to land a helicopter on the road to airlift someone off the mountain. While it was cool to see, it showed that the mountains ain't nothing to mess with and will hurt you real quick if you don't pay attention.



After coming out of the park, I opted for taking Route 40 into Steamboat Springs since it looked way more interesting. As I went up and down in elevation, it went from sun, to clouds, to rain, to snow, to rain, to snow, and to super sunny that made the road hard to see from the glare. I also would go for long stretches without ever seeing another car. I did pop off though on some forest road to snag a picture.



Highway 40 also took up up Rabbit Ears Pass and the Continental Divide. I didn't think to snag a picture while I was in the park so I pulled over and got one here.



Steamboat was nice but it poured rain and the altitude had finally gotten the better of me so I ended up turning in early for the night and not getting a chance to explore the town like I wanted too. I did wake up early the next morning to hit the road to Utah. After driving through nothingness for what seemed like forever, I finally made it to the state line. I was sorely disappointed though at the false advertising this sign provided...there are no living dinosaurs in Utah.



Starting my drive into Vernal, I figured I would stop off at the Dinosaur National Monument since I was ahead of schedule and figure it could be cool. Luckily I was treated to some more awesome sites with Split Mountain and the Green River along with some dinosaur bones.





After goofing around in the park for a couple of hours, I headed out towards Park City and then through I-80 into Salt Lake. The route took me past the Strawberry Reservoir, which was the first large body of water I'd seen in a while.



Going into Park City was fairly uneventful and I was just ready to get to the hotel, but when I stopped for gas one of the F-150's from Hoonigan was at the station as well. I didn't want to be a total creep, so I snapped a pictures through my bug blasted windshield. I was told later on that this is Ken Block's daily driver when he's in town.



The next day, after figuring out an apartment, I took a ride out to the Bonneville Salt Flats. I was a little disappointed they were flooded, but the water was perfectly still and looked like a mirror, so that was cool. I also learned the I-80 between Salt Lake and Wendover might be the most desolate stretch of road I've ever been on. I was glad I fueled up before leaving Salt Lake since it could have gotten a little interesting.



On the way back, I took a small detour to Emigration Canyon and was met with some more of Utah's beauty.



The next day, I headed up into the canyons since I had one more day till my new digs were ready to move into. I had no real plan, but I had a map and a fuel tank of gas. Also my truck was about 1,000lbs lighter since I dumped all my stuff off at a storage unit that I'd been hauling around in the back.

My first stop after taking Big Cottonwood Canyon Rd. was the Guardsman Pass. For a newcomer to the mountains like me, it was a tad sketchy going down a 10% grade with no guardrail and blind corners. I learned to get comfortable with it real quick, but it was a little nerve racking at first.





From there, I worked my way down through Pine Canyon Road and into the Wasatch Mountain State Park. I talked to a ranger at the visitor center and he recommended since I had a 4x4 to take it up through Snake Creek road and over the mountain to Cummings Parkway and into Cascade Spring where I could pick up the Alpine Loop Scenic Byway. I figured Snake Creek would be just a dirt road and was only used to what they considered a state park trail in Michigan (which is basically just a rutted dirt road). Turns out in Utah that means a rocky trail, with steep drops, tight switchbacks, and some impressive grades. I'm sure it wasn't a difficult trail by any means, but it was a little past my comfort level given the roads I'd driven before. The trail did end up taking me into the Uinta National Forest too.







The next day was spent moving, so just hauling crap around in the back of my truck.

Finally, today after I'd gotten settled into my apartment, I figured I would take a ride out to Bountiful and take a run over Skyline Drive since it was named one of the most scenic drives in Utah. I knew what to expect now on these forest roads so it wasn't so bad. I was impressed at some of the vehicles going over it though, a Honda Civic, a $60,000 Acura MDX, and a very lost family in a VW Routan. There were a ton of people out on the road/trail too and I managed to talk to a few Toyota guys when I stopped off to enjoy the scenery.





So tomorrow is football day and then Monday I start work, so my adventuring in Utah will probably be put on hold for a bit while I get more settled. My wife and furniture will be arriving later this week too so I'll probably be busy with that. I'm not sure how equipped my truck is for the snowy mountain passes, so I'm not entirely sure how much exploring I'll be doing once winter hits. But I'm sure I'll find time to do something.

If anyone is out in Salt Lake and can offer some suggestions for a mostly stock Tacoma to go tackle, I'd loved to hear the insight!

 

Sounds like quite an adventure, good luck in Utah.

 

I have a lot of family up that way and my Mom is from Spanish Fork which is about an hour south of SLC. A lot of beautiful scenery to be explored. I hope Utah treats you well.

 

Welcome to Utah! I'll be on the lookout for your rig...