Deep Creek, Utah - Where The Old West Lives On



Ancient Sod roof cabin with Deep Creek Mountains in the distance - JDJ Photo
The Deep Creek Valley in Western Utah is one of the most remote and out of the way places in all of the lower 48 States. The nearest gas station is 60 miles away at Wendover, Nevada. I met some locals out there this last weekend and asked them if the store in the old "Sheridan Hotel" was open and they said - "Nope, but I wish it was, Every time I go to town I have to take 5 five gallon gas cans with me just to be able to get around in the valley. The population of this valley with the Goshute Indians included is roughly 200 hearty souls. When I visited Deep Creek I was struck by the awesome remoteness of the place and the stunning view of the 12,000 foot peaks of the Deep Creek Mountains towering over the whole place. These incredible mountains are cloaked with a forest that contains 7 different types of coniferous trees and a smattering of quaking aspen. There are tiny cold streams in several of the Canyons such as Goshute, Indian Farm and Granite Creek. Deep Creek is called "Ibapah" by the Indians - a word that means "Deep Down or Clay Colored Water". The history of this place is the stuff of legends. Trappers, Army Exploring Expeditions, Stagecoach and Pony Express Stations attacked by Indians, U.S. Troops fighting Indians, Emigrant wagon trains heading west to California by the central route and bandits and brigands waiting to way lay and ambush unsuspecting travelers. If a person was ever looking for the old west, not the Hollywood nonsense but true homesteads that are generations deep and still hanging on working the land, Deep Creek is the place where the old West lives on.
Lonely Valley Road - JDJ Photo

Delta is the only place with services - JDJ Photo

Deep Creek Valley & Mountains - JD Jessop

From 1913-1919 the Lincoln Highway Passed through Deep Creek - JDJ Photo

11,897 foot Ibapah Azimuth Peak. This is likely the mountain locals named "Haystack" but that 12,020 foot peak is hidden behind the "Haystack" in the left of this pic - JDJ Photo

Deep Creek Mountains and Great Basin Sagebrush - JDJ Photo

Some salty pioneers never left - JDJ Photo

Unknown - JDJ Photo

TRUTH - JDJ Photo

These bells tinkle in the desert wind in memory of some special person - JDJ Photo

Sometimes you use what you can find to remember your loved ones - JDJ Photo

This stone struck me as very sad - JDJ Photo

Stone Epitaph - Deep Creek Cemetery, Utah - JDJ Photo

JDJ Photo

JDJ Photo

JDJ Photo

Rest easy hero - Semper Fi - JDJ Photo

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Brattleboro Retreat Tower - Haunted Asylum lookout in the Vermont Woods.

Image
Brattleboro Retreat Tower Since I arrived in New England I have been fascinated by a structure that caught my attention while I was looking for interesting sites to see. The structure I was curious about is called the “Brattleboro Retreat Tower” and it is located in Brattleboro, Vermont. The town of Brattleboro is about an hour drive north of where I live in Belchertown, Massachusetts so one Sunday afternoon I took a drive up to that place to check it out. On approach to Brattleboro I crossed the Connecticut River on a large green bow type steel bridge and then rounded a large frozen pond where people were fishing through holes out on the ice.  I made my way into the town and around the city park and then descended a hill and passed by some epic old Victorian looking structures on a campus, the entrance of which was marked by a decorative metal arch with a lamp hanging from it and the top of the arch read “Brattleboro Retreat”. The Brattleboro Retreat – which is an Asylum for ...
Read more

MONTANA - Pioneer Mountains Scenic Byway

Image
10,127 foot Sawtooth Mountain as seen from the west and Grasshopper valley.  The Pioneer Mountains National Forest Scenic Byway is a road that passes through some beautiful mountain terrain in the south west corner of Montana. This road, Forest Route 73, takes the traveler on a 43-mile journey through the Beaverhead / Deerlodge National Forest from Wise River in the north to Polaris in the south. All along this route you will have stunning views of the west face and crest of the Pioneer Mountain range.  Torrey Mountain 11,147 Feet as seen from Scenic Byway The route follows the Wise river for a stretch and there are several waysides that have interpretive panels on topics such as geology, flora, fauna, glaciation, homesteads etc. Near the Wise River you can stop at a wayside and follow a short footpath past a pond full of lilies down to the riverside. Along this trail there are several benches that make great places to set for a spell and contemplate Gods beautiful ...
Read more

Alden House & Myles Standish Burial Ground: Duxbury, Massachusetts

Image
The Alden House in Duxbury, Massachusetts is a National Historic Landmark that commemorates the place where Mayflower passengers John Alden and Priscilla Mullens Alden lived and built their home in 1627.  The "Alden Kindred of America" organization operates the National Historic Landmark and their mission is to Preserve, Educate and exhibit the history and heritage of Pilgrims John Alden and Priscilla Mullens Alden. You can visit their website at www.alden.org to find out more information about genealogy and history of the site.  I visited this site in the fall of 2016 and the woods around the house and in Duxbury in general are beautiful as they exibit the typical color show that is autumn in New England.  John Alden was hired as part of the crew for the Mayflower. While the ship was anchored off of Cape Cod, John, along with others signed the Mayflower compact. Rather than return with the Mayflower to England, John chose to stay on with the Plymouth Co...
Read more