Following the Pony Express Route:

About 18 months ago, our son Jason and a few of his best running buddies decided to run a 50 mile leg of the Pony Express trail.  Roger, as per his normal, went along as part of the support team to encourage them along. We've been talking about retracing their run while driving the large loop (425miles) which takes in a good part of the trail as we pick it up in Lehi (south of SL) and follow it west into Nevada, up to Wendover (Utah's quick fix for gambling just on the Nevada/Utah border) and then back home.  We found the perfect day, free of any commitments, and took off.

The above is a restored structure of Simpson Springs Station, named for l858 mail-route explorer Captain J. H. Simpson.  At the time, a good ten years after the Mormon Pioneers established Salt Lake City, there were still no secure and quick mail routes between St. Joseph Missouri and the West Coast as neither a train line nor telegraph lines had been established yet.  An ad that appeared in newspapers at that time stated:  Wanted. Young, skinny wiry fellows not over 18.  Must be expert riders, willing to risk death daily.  Orphans preferred. 

The first rider left St. Joseph on April 3rd, 1860 and arrived in San Francisco 10 days later.  Riders averaged 12 miles an hour, changing horses at each station along the way.  By October of l861, the telegraph was connected coast to coast and the Pony Express  discontinued.  

While the area is known as the West Desert there are numerous fresh water springs along the route that enabled the stations to maintain a supply of fresh horses for the riders.  Today, those same springs support herds of wild horses (above) and, according to what we saw, a number of thriving sheep enterprises.

Below is the old general store located in the city of Gold Hill.  I loved it because of the board placed across the front door while every window, wall and most of the roof was open to anyone who wanted to enter.  While there is still a gold mine operating there, the town which once was home to over 3,000 people, now supports only a few hardy souls.

The last leg of our trip took us past the salt flats southwest of the Great Salt Lake.  Here, yearly speed racing events take place which draw race fans and racers from around the world.