Our trip to Roy, Utah

This was our first full day to spend with Gary and we wanted to make the most of it. So we took a short drive out to Antelope Island. This is the largest of the islands in the Great Salt Lake and is attached to the surrounding area by a causeway. The picture below is of the island from the trip across the causeway and the water was so calm that the reflection was almost flawless.

Once on the island we drove around to the top of a knoll to the visitor’s center and took the picture below shows the natural causeway that we had just driven across. The visitor’s center housed a nice explanation of the lake, its formation, and the geology and wildlife that make this a very unique place to visit.

The next picture was taken looking north of the visitor’s center and as the sign noted near this point it is not possible to see the end of the water. The lake is not very deep, but its expanse is mind-boggling.

The island has several sand beaches and one below is located at Bridger Bay. The parking area is quite some distance from the waters edge, but this did not seem to deter those interested in testing the very salty water.

Sandy and our son Gary posed for this picture. Note the hazy sky behind them, this is moisture in the air and seems to hang around for most of the day. But the sun was very bright and the temperatures were rising all morning, thankfully we had a nice breeze to keep us cool.

We do not know if this peak has a name but remember that the brochure indicated that it rises about 1000 feet above the water level. We drove up a rode that took us about half way to the top but did not hike to the top. The road sign indicated that we were going to descend down a 23% grade. We remember seeing steep interstate sections that were marked with 6% to 8% grades, so this was a very steep climb.

Gary took this picture from the car window about halfway up the road. It looked entirely too steep for us to attempt the hike.

The final two pictures were taken at the farm located towards the south end of the island. This farm was established in the late 1800’s and the cattle, sheep, and horses from this farm went to support the efforts of the Mormon Church emigration fund. The original house was a log structure and this one replaced it at some later point. I noticed three distinctive differences in the brick structure so we know it was added on to several times. The picture below shows one of the many implements left from the many years of hard work on this island. It is known as a Jay Hawk Hay Stacker.

I found this old advertisement for the implement; it looks rather ungainly but must have made life somewhat easier for the ranch hands when it was introduced. The picture below was a wagon designed and built to follow the sheep herds around the island as they followed the good grazing lands. It originally had a canvas top, this one was converted to metal and inside there was a stove, table, and bed. We wondered what it would be like to live in this with this very hot weather.

The final picture of Antelope Island is another picture of the causeway and the mainland behind it. The water and sky seemed extra blue today and although it had warmed up considerably as we left we really enjoyed our visit to this truly unique island. It was well worth the price of admission.

After lunch we visited the Hill Aerospace Museum, which is right next-door to the air force base itself. This is a free display of a wide variety of aircraft and of course my eye goes to the cargo aircraft since I was an aircraft mechanic on the C-130. The airplane above is a C-124 Globemaster, an old reciprocating engine aircraft.

And of course, the aircraft below is a C-130 Hercules painted in camouflage much the same as the aircraft I was assigned to while stationed at CCK Air Force Base in Taiwan. This aircraft was located towards the backside of the building, and looks as if it has not yet met with the restoration that most of the aircraft at this site have seen.

It isn’t often that I step in front of the camera, but in this case I wanted my picture taken in front of the type of aircraft that I can say I am proud to have worked on. At the time I worked on these planes I had no thought that I would someday give one of my sons a guided tour of what I remembered about the plane.

The end of our day arrived with dinner at Gary’s place. He prepared some great steaks on the grill and it was a good time to enjoy the wine we purchased in Grand Junction. We had a great day, one we will never forget.