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| Finden der Gewinnenstadte |
| A plan was struck on a clear blue day, that me in my Split Delux, and John in his Vanagon Synchro would climb the Oquir mountains, just to the west of the Salt Lake City valley. From the valley floor, you can see the Kennecott mining operation from anywhere in the valley. Looking like nothing more than piles of dirt, it's hard to appreciate the manpower that has gone into this huge undertaking. Growing up in Norther Utah, you know your way around the surrounding areas, and going to the top of the mountain up a narrow and winding dirt road to get a good look into the main bowl of the open pit mine is something all native Utahn's must do. |
| Once at the top of the mountain, this is what you see. Looking directly in front of you is the main bowl of the largest open pit mine in the world. You can't see in the pics, but at the time of these pics, there were half dozen dumptrucks three stories high driving around. That's how large this pit is. In the background, is the Salt Lake City valley. The view from the top is amazing. You can see the Great Salt Lake, as well as the famous salt flats from up here. |
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| And here I am at the top. The overlook is maintained by the mining company, so once you make it to the top, it's a nice flat area. But in the middle of the flat area, there is a mound of rock that called to me. I accidentally held the camera on an angle, so it doesn't look as steep as it really was (look at the ground behind the bus). You can tell by the back tire camber, that I started peeling out and loosing traction once I got that far. |
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| Looking at the passenger side, I see what stopped me. There is a 'step' of sorts that the front tire wouldn't climb over. While I was playing here, John took off up the last tip of the mountain for (well deserved) bragging rights. It's hard to tell in this pic, but that hill is between 35 and 40 degrees, with whoopdie-doo's all the way up it. Not only did John make it all the way up, he came down and did it a couple more times. I got to ride with him on one trip, and belive me, that is VERY steep when you're inside riding shotgun! |
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| After I got off of the hill, John had to show me how it's done with a Synchro. He popped up on top with no problem. After cruising up some hills with John in this thing, I am nothing but IMPRESSED with it's capabilities. I never knew those 4wd vanagons did so well. Click here to continue the adventure.................. |