OOIDA’s tour trailer stops next to the Great Salt Lake
The next stop for OOIDA’s tour trailer is next to the Great Salt Lake.
The Spirit of the American Trucker is scheduled to be at the Tooele, Utah, TA on Dec 11-13. It is at Exit 99 from I-80.
The Tooele TA has 191 parking spots for tractor-trailers. Tooele is west of Salt Lake City on a stretch of I-80 that runs beside the Great Salt Lake.
The name is pronounced “two-WILL-ah.” There is confusion about the derivation of the name. One hypothesis is that it derives from the Goshute Indian word for “bear” but it also could be from a word for a common weed, according to VisitUtah.com.
West of Tooele, I-80 runs through the Great Salt Lake Desert. The horizon is wide and white as snow. Interstate Kyle recorded a video of the drive and included some typed commentary.
The drive west takes motorist by the Bonneville Salt Flats. Most of the desert receives less than 8 inches of annual precipitation.
Scenic drive from Las Vegas
Jon Osburn, skipper of the Spirit of the American Trucker trailer, gets to see some remarkable scenery on the drive to Tooele from the previous stop in Las Vegas.
The drive takes him through the scenic Virgin River Gorge in northwest Arizona, where Arizona, Utah and Nevada meet.
After that, to the north, the drive takes him alongside the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area, most of which is west of I-15 in the southwest corner of Utah. It is described as “transition zone between the Mojave Desert, the Great Basin and the Colorado Plateau” by VisitUtah.com.
North of there is the Dixie National Forest, where more red cliffs and outcrops will be visible.
Still headed north, near the city of Nephi, Utah, Osburn will be able to see Mount Nebo from the interstate. Ken Lund shot this photo from the highway of it. It is noted for its prominence, with few other peaks crowding it.
Word from the road
Speaking of remarkable sights, Osburn said driving through Las Vegas to get to the previous stop for The Spirit was different from every other time he has driven through the city.
“It was strange driving through town to see these large hotels with parking lots that were empty,” he said.
Often a group gathers at The Spirit to listen to the fresh evening broadcast of Land Line Now, said. In Las Vegas, mention on Land Line Now of renewed coronavirus closings in many states elicited a round of groans, he said. Not having somewhere to sit and eat a meal that is not behind the wheel of your truck wears thin pretty quickly, he said.
As it happens, the Country Pride restaurant at the Tooele TA was closed because of the restrictions.
The state- or county-mandated restrictions are causing a lot of problems for restaurant owners, Osburn said. It is difficult to profitably operate a business at 50% or even 25% capacity, he said.
“When you find a restaurant open, at least take the time to thank them, and try to support them,” Osburn said. “Use them or lose them.”
You can check for the latest state COVID-19 orders at LandLine.Media by pulling down the Resources menu.
Stop by when you see The Spirit
If you see OOIDA’s tour trailer, stop by and say hello to Osburn. He enjoys visiting about the Association’s activities and current issues. He usually has copies of Land Line Magazine to hand out. You can join or renew your OOIDA membership for $10 off the regular price there. Free face masks are available for anyone with a commercial driver’s license at The Spirit. You also can get forms for uninsured drivers to get flu, shingles and pneumonia vaccine vouchers at The Spirit.
After Tooele, OOIDA’s tour trailer is scheduled to stop Dec. 15-17 in Eden, Idaho.
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