On the Road: Salt Lake City to Reno, Nevada

Made it into Reno, Nevada late last night. It was a long drive from Salt Lake City, via I-80, but the alternative would have been to head south, by way of Las Vegas, and that would have left me in Los Angeles and added another day of driving just to get somewhere, so Reno made more sense. I plan to do some bird watching today near Lake Tahoe, but expect to be home late this afternoon--after more than three weeks of driving. America is a big country.

On the Road: Grand Junction to Salt Lake City (Summer 2009)

Headed off this morning (the 15th) to Palisade, which appears to be the center of Colorado winemaking. I visited Canyon Wind Winery and tasted some good wines. They make a Tempranillo, in addition to Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and other wines. All solid. The vineyards in the area (and orchards, especially peaches) are planted on the floor of a big canyon, the name of which I have yet to discover. Cool winds blow through the canyon, providing cool nights, which is good for the grapes.

I had hoped to get quickly to the Moab area and then to head north to Salt Lake City, or even into Nevada, but a late piece of work came in, which set me back a couple of hours. I made it to Salt Lake City nevertheless. On the way I stopped briefly at Arches National Park before heading north on 191, through Price, to Salt Lake City.

On the Road: Bonneville Salt Flats, Salt Lake City (Summer 2009)

I passed into Utah this morning, from Nevada. Glad to see Nevada behind me. Having lunch (poor Mexican) in Salt Lake City, trying to get my bearings and deciding what to do here. On the way in, I took a quick detour to the Bonneville Salt Flats, which were very flat and very salty (yes, I tasted them). No signs of life anywhere. I passed the Great Salt Lake on the way in, and one of the city's airports.

I felt it wouldn't be right to pass through without seeing the Mormon Temple and the Mormon Tabernacle. Actually, I skipped going into the former, as it's not an especially attractive building. The Tabernacle is holy ground, however--not because of any religious associations, but because it is where some of my favorite recordings were made. It is here that Maurice Abravanel and the Utah Symphony recorded the Mahler symphonies. In particular, their recordings of the Third and Sixth Symphonies are priceless (on the Vanguard label, I believe). In fact, their recording of the Third Symphony is one of the greatest recordings I've ever heard.

The building itself is very plain--much plainer than I imagined it would be--a simple oval with very little adornment. The ceiling is white plaster. Because of the plain white dome and the shape of the building, looking up you'd think yourself in a hockey arena, but something about the place is magical when it comes to sound. I'm glad I took the trouble to go look at it. It has funny wooden columns painted to look like marble. According to one of the guides, the original organ had 2,000 pipes. A few more than 100 of these survive, but the current organ has 20,000 or some such fantastic figure. Seems excessive to me....

I also liked the dome on the old Utah Hotel, which has been converted into a Mormon administrative building. I love the old-fashioned beehive on top. There were a lot of daintily dressed women and conservatively dressed men about....