Ok, less on cars now... Thursday...

Thursday was packup and back in car (ok that didn't last long) and into Salt Lake where we saw that yes, indeed, there are a lot of Mormons, and yes, they do take up quite a bit of city real estate... I was not captured and converted though, and we managed to make it out via a Sears where my copilot had to swap a 7-pack of singlets purchased during the Vegas shopping freny incident. The nice girl at the counter asked lots of questions and didn't understand how you could have Christms in the summer and told us about how she went overseas once to Spain and her aunt had her purse stolen. 

Trucking south we stopped in at American Fork (a place not a restaurant) and I had another mini-pilgrimage of sorts as we called in at Blade HQ... So many tempting goodies... From there it was down to Spanish Fork (like American Fork but with more tomatoes) (not really) and then off the main interstate, I-15, swinging east on 6 towards some backwoods scenic routes, marked as 96 then 264 to 31... These were entirely unknown to us and picked from a map as they traced through forest and possibly interesting countryside, apart from that we knew nothing. As opposed to the huge wide interstates, they all proved to be two-way two lane roads much like those at home, but blessedly with next to no traffic. We found forests and farms and valleys and then we found hills... And a bunch of other stuff... Like a coal mine (there are lots around here)

                                

And then some white stuff that wasn't coal... And then a sign that said "Do not enter without chains before May" and we were like 'huh?'... And then after burning in Vegas and getting sandblasted in Salt Lake, we were somewhat surprised to find ourselves here 

                                

At 10,000ft on a mountain... Which was interesting... So we got out tromped around in snow and got cold... Then back down to farmland, and lunch...

                                           

No I'm not kidding... It was that or prehistoric mac and cheese from a warmer in the little local supermarket... And then on into red rock country.. Big red rock country... So many photos of big red rocks...

                                  

We ended up having to overshoot the turnoff to Monument Valley in order to find a bed, and after about a 500 mile drive we pulled in fairly late, about 1930, to a little spot called Blanding... Not much there but we got a room and went to the local steakhouse, pretty much the only food in town apart from a Subway... Where oddly the fish caught our eye... I had catfish, so now I can say I have, and it was real good... With veges and mashed potato and gravy (which seems to be a big thing around there...). After that it was time for several hours of car shows on TV and then a well earned sleep...