Travel Day 3, Rock Springs, WY to Rye Patch, NV

Slept in just a bit, but was on the road a little after 7a. 584 miles behind us. Thought we'd find a campsite at Rye Patch State Recreation Area, just north of Lovelock NV. However, that was a bust. With it forecast to be 15 degrees tonight, I thought maybe we could get an electric site so I could back my diesel fed Webasto heater up with a small electric heater I have along. Didn't see any and didn't think it would be worth the fee to stay in the other sites. Ended up just coming back up to the interstate off ramp, where this is plenty of room to park for the night. The friggin wind is relentless. Put up with very strong winds again today. 40 mph cross winds, out of the north. Once past Wendover, UT, they were pretty much right out of the west again. Gas mileage really sucked. We did start the day out with little wind and about 9 mpg. But a few hours later with the winds back up, mileage was back down to 6 mpg or less. And we are now in the land of 4.xx/g gas prices. So far it's barely been above $4. But still... Since we're not at a restaurant or anywhere that serves food, Rosanne put together a salad and some beef tips for supper. One of the first photos I uploaded to this footprint, is of the Tree of Life. It is called Metaphor: The Tree of Utah, often known as the "Tree of Life". It is an 87-foot-tall sculpture located in the middle of the Great Salt Lake Desert, approximately 25 miles east of Wendover near I-80 (roughly mile marker 25). Created by Swedish artist Karl Momen between 1982–1986, it features concrete spheres decorated with native rocks and minerals.
Multiple wildlife crossings, including bridges and underpasses, are installed on I-80 east of Wendover to reduce vehicle collisions with migrating mule deer, elk, and moose. Nevada Department of Transportation (.gov) indicates nine crossings are located between Wendover and Wells. These structures, combined with fencing, safely guide animals across the busy interstate corridor.
I believe this is the strip mine I uploaded a photo of; The primary strip/open-pit mine near the Great Salt Lake is the Bingham Canyon Mine (Kennecott Copper Mine), located roughly 20 miles southwest of Salt Lake City in the Oquirrh Mountains. As the world's deepest open-pit mine, it produces copper, gold, silver, and molybdenum, creating a massive excavation over 2.5 miles wide.Læs mere