German
USA: Moonscape - Mine - Mormon
June 2019
Kennecott Copper Mine near Bingham
The large coloured scree slope of the copper mine can be seen from far away. From the mine's visitor car park a shuttle bus will take you up to the top. The view of and into the largest hole in the world overwhelms you – 1200 meter deep, 4500 meter wide, in operation since 1906. The monsters of trucks with a capacity of almost 200 tons, tire costs 60,000 Francs a piece, drive around with their loads on the slopes carved out of the rock. They transport the copper-containing rocs a few miles for further processing.
Cathedral Gorge State Park
In this State Park, tower-like formations and narrow gorges meander through the landscape. Erosion by rain, wind, meltwater led in the soft silt stone and the clay minerals to rivulets and fascinated us to marvel at these resulting rock formations. In summer the temperatures here are 40°C by day. We took a hike in June and woke up the next morning with absolute silence in a winter landscape with 15cm of snow. So we drove to the nearest canyon earlier than planned.
Snow Canyon State Park
We enjoyed the view of the red rocks at this picturesque park, with majestic sandstone cliffs in a desert setting. The canyon has been the scene of Hollywood films such as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Electric Horseman and Jeremiah Johnson. Here we found no snow, only white rocks.
USA: Sonora Desert June 2019
Things happen in America
In Phoenix, we had the one, empty gas bottle refilled at a large camping outfitter. On his list, the employee also had to write down our license plate. He asked about the state. We replied from North Carolina. He looked at us with big eyes and asked for my driver's license so he could write off North Carolina. Spelling didn't help either, so we entered the difficult name in his form ourselves.
We were already camping for two days at an absolutely great campground on the Colorado River, when shortly before noon a car with three women parked next to. One of them was fully drunken, the other two were only a bit tipsy. The attempt to set up a sun protection tent failed, and the tent was then no longer usable. The behavior of the three was really a bad entertainment. After 2 hours, the spook was over. Before driving away, the only slightly drunk female apologized for her sister's behavior.
At midnight, a car drove into the area and illuminates it fully. Tent, cool box, chairs and table were unloaded. Then they made a fire and cooked. After three hours there was also bed time for these neighbors.
Landcruiser Heritage Museum, Salt Lake City
For all-wheel drive vehicle interested a worth seeing collection of Toyota off-road vehicles. Since we had very good experiences with a Land Cruiser pickup V8 in Southern Africa, the visit was a must for us!
Temple Square, Salt Lake City
The Temple Square, the Mecca of the Mormons, belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Christian faith community of the Mormons. Salt Lake Temple took 40 years to build. The Temple is the headquarter of the HLT church, is visited by approx. three to five million people annually and is the venue for concerts and other events. The temple cannot be visited from the inside. Very friendly employees, missionaries offer guided tours through the facility. We did not feel converted after the tour and did not join the club.
Utah State Capitol in Salt Lake City, Utah
The Capitol is located above the city with great panoramic views over the entire plain and the adjacent mountains. The building is full of history, fascinating works of art and stunning architecture. 24 columns, 7.60 meters high and each 2500 kg heavy as well as the interior walls are made of Georgia marble. The unique way the building was designed is also characterized by the use of skylights, which allow natural light to illuminate the representative hallways and spaces. A chandelier weighing 1,850 kg hangs from the ceiling of the dome. During various renovations, the building was made more earthquake-proof by basic insulators. Visiting this building was an absolute highlight. We were totally thrilled.
