Heading north, to the The Golden Spike

Heading north from Capitol Reef it's a long way to anywhere, at least at the rate we travel. Though we've racked up 5,000 miles so far, we've only been doing 40 or 50 miles between stops on most days. You can't get very far at that rate, so Steve plotted out a couple of 150 mile days to get us "up north" where we can do some shopping and visit the Golden Spike historical park - one of the items on his bucket list. 

First stop after Capitol Reef: Yuba State Park - no relationship to Yuba City, California.  Here's the story:
Yuba Reservoir (officially named Sevier Bridge Reservoir) was built to store water for agricultural and industrial use. Construction on the dam began in 1902. The local farmers and ranchers had to build the dam themselves or risk losing their water rights. Men working on the structure called it the U. B. Dam. As they worked they sang a song that stated they were "damned if they worked and damned if they didn't." The phonetic sound became the reservoir's dam, eventually spelled Yuba.

It became a state park in 1969, and it is one of the nicest "family" parks we've seen. There are little swimming areas, boating, fishing, each campsite has a nice lush patch of grass, and there's a snack bar and water vehicles rental shop too. They're putting in a sand vollyball court, and there are a couple of cabins for non-campers. The park is very neat and clean, and clearly well cared for all the way around.

In stark contrast, our next stop, in Brigham City, was  Willard Bay State Park. 'Selected because there isn't much else in the area that would get us close to the Golden Spike park, as well as the shopping we needed to do. The park sits between Willard Bay Reservoir and I-15. Cottonwood Campground, where we stayed, has full hook-ups, but is right by the freeway so very noisy. The campground is rather grubby and neglected looking, and we hardly saw a host or ranger in the three nights we were there. When we did see them they were blasting through the campground so fast that I'm sure they weren't paying any attention to what was going on in the park.
The primary draw of the park is water sports, and we'd probably be more appreciative of the park if those were our interest. The location did serve it's purpose however. We got the shopping done, and made a day trip to the Golden Spike Historic Site.

The building of a transcontinental railroad is such a quintessential piece of American history that we couldn't leave Utah without visiting the place where east and west met: Promontory Summit.

It is at this point, after years of laying track, the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific Railroad converged their two lines. Immigrants from all over Europe, Civil War veterans, Chinese, American Indians and ex-slaves all worked on this project that many said would never be completed because of the barriers posed by geography. Six years after it was begun, the visionary leaders of both companies, and those who backed them, proved the naysayers wrong. For better or worse, the rail line served to open up the west to settlement. After that it was only a matter of time before cities sprang up all over the plains, all the way to the west coast. This one artery had so much impact on the character and growth of the U.S. that it's a little overwhelming to think about.

Golden Spike National Historic Site is managed by the National Park Service, and they've done a really nice job on the visitor's center displays.

There are reproductions of the two engines that participated in the original ceremony, both lovingly cared for by volunteer engineers and firemen. The 119 was steaming down the track when we arrived, blowing that cheerful whistle we all associate with the old trains. It pulled in to the siding just as we arrived at the viewing area.

A short presentation by a ranger, track-side, filled in important details about the engines, and gave visitors a chance to have their questions answered.

There's a driving tour too, where real train aficionados and history buffs can see old trestle sites, work camps, and other points important in the development of the line.

Definitely a day trip worth the effort!

On our approach to the Golden Spike park we noticed a sprawling industrial complex near the highway., so on the way out we decided to check it out. Talk about a contrast, this time in transportation systems!

The plant is ATK Space Systems. You can't help but notice them, as they have a great display of rockets right on the highway. Each item in the display is labeled, and this would make a great stop for anyone interested in rocketry.

ATK was the prime contractor for the solid rocket booster motor that lifted the space shuttles into space for more than 30 years.  According to the local paper, now, with the shuttle program ending, they've had to lay of 2,200 workers since 2009 - including 100 just this week. This is hard on this small county of Box Elder, that has an unemployment rate of nearly 10%, the highest in the state. The company is now looking for "other uses" and customers for their booster motors. One potential use is a joint venture with the European Space Agency.

This was our last stop in Utah. Now, it's north to Idaho!
For a few more photos of the engines, check out the album.