Backroads and the Basin

Originally I was going to take the main interstates to my mom's in South Dakota. That would've taken me up through Salt Lake City on I-15 then straight over through Cheyenne, WY on I-80 (yes the same I-80 that takes you to Tahoe). But after talking to a friend of mine, who reminded me that I am in no rush, I decided to take the back roads east through Utah, then take another Scenic Byway up to Wyoming.

Let me remind you that I had just been through some of the most beautiful country in the world, I kind of expected the rest of Utah to be just as beautiful...

So I headed east off of 15 on Highway 6. Most of the highway was undergoing construction but it was easy going if not a little boring. At the turn off for 191 there was a big factory that looked like some kind of rock processing. I almost thought I was turning into the parking lot. But after a 1/2 mile the country opened up again and Utah's beauty prevailed. The drive through Indian Canyon was especially beautiful with a geology wholly different from anything I'd seen so far.

I stopped for lunch in a little town called Duchesne for lunch. I had a choice between a hamburger, a cheeseburger, a bacon cheeseburger, an avocado cheeseburger or a hot dog. As I was waiting for my bacon cheeseburger I started chatting with a woman sitting next to me. I never got her name...

She was born and raised in what she called "The Basin". Her husband was having a hard time looking for work.

"But I'm in Healthcare out here and as long as I don't screw up I'll never loose my job."

I asked her whether they were having trouble finding trained Healthcare workers. She told me that they don't even try to find trained workers they try and recruit people straight from high school to the community colleges to train them for the industry. The problem is that none of the young people want to stay in The Basin.

"But this is a cute town." I answered

She kind of shrugged her shoulders and went on to tell me about the incentive programs that they have designed to get the younger generation to stay.

"But it's not working."

She got her to go food, I finished my lunch and continued on my way. In about three miles I understood why the younger generation was fleeing the basin. Agriculture and industrial equipment as far as the eye could see. Run down store fronts and not one hint of fun or entertainment. It was ugly. The whole drive I was also stuck behind that sewage truck. Kind of fitting I thought.