Sun Tunnels

It has been very smokey in the valleys out west.  The forest fires and the drought have combined to limit visibility and cause noxious air everywhere.  But since it was our 38th anniversary, which always falls on the autumnal equinox, we decided to head out into the desert in search of adventure with the goal of finding the Sun Tunnels, a sculpture by Nancy Holt located in the upper NW corner of Utah. We had loaded up the car with three dogs: Emmy, Rosie and Luna and took off to the west.  And as it turns out, you really have to want to get there to go there as it is over 200 miles from SLC, a lot of it on washboard gravel road.
The drive to Wendover was uneventful, especially since we had no visibility.  We were to turn off at the exit for the Bonneville Racetrack, and when we found it we could barely see Pilot Peak which is almost 11,000 feet high and helped guide the pioneers across the desert.  I guess they were lucky to have no fires but unlucky to have no water or food; poor Donner Party.
 It was very dry and smokey, but as we got on to the gravel road which skirts the mountains, we began to see lots of wildlife.  First we saw antelope, then a whole herd of Elk and next a couple of coyotes.  A golden Eagle sat atop a pole and just let us take all the pictures that we wanted.  There are a surprising number of small springs, and a couple of big ranches before we got to the turn off to the tunnels.  As we approached, we could see them lying out on the range, positioned in an X so that the sun would be visible through them as it set and rose on the solstices.  They are large cement tubes with holes drilled in them to mimic the constellations.  We sat in one and had our lunch and our bottle of Champagne. We toasted our good fortune to have made it this far and this long. The dogs ran around and chased sticks, grass, and imaginary beasties.

 The thing is, I find it wonderful that artists take these risks and do these installations out in the middle of Nowhere.  I was surprised that no one else was there, and it seemed like it was not well visited.  Just a few recent tire tracks, and a dirt road with weeds in the middle leading up to it. Perhaps it is best that it is far away from the usual suspects with their spray paint cans and trash.


We decided to circle the Great Salt Lake and go back via Park Valley and Snowville, a beautiful drive with less dirt but more miles. The smoke was still hiding the mountains and tinting the air, but we could see the farms and lonely abandoned homesteads from years past. I absolutely love driving around with Doug and the dogs, especially in Utah, finding art treasures and wild things, learning and being amazed.