Volume I : Chapter VIII
The Bonneville Salt Flats are special place for Jill and I. The first trip we took together, just the two of us, brought us here.
We were fresh out of our long term relationships, treading water until we could figure out how to get out of town. The big trip was still so far off. One day Jill called to see if I wanted to go walk the dogs in the cranberry fields just a few minutes out of the city. After hanging up I looked over to my stove where there was a jar of old salt I had collected some years back from the salt flats in Utah. I remembered that place and I wanted to see it again. Quickly google mapping out of curiosity, I was reminded it was a mere 16 hour drive away and if we left that minute we could actually make it for the sunrise.
That trip was a whirlwind - green beer in Pendleton, Oregon, a few dozen sketchy coffees off the interstate, a few rounds of iPod Baseball, singing along to stay awake and no other plan than to see the flats. We didn't to pack anything but a busted polaroid camera and one change of clothes. As all our plans seem to go, we ended up behind schedule and having to spend a night in Pendleton and then SLC before we could get the two hours out of town for the sunrise. The cheapest motel we could find was a Motel 6 in a rough part of town, we ran to the store to get beer and ended up talking to some guys about a party; naturally we went. Friends were made, and bad ideas made with the best intentions. We left in the morning with matching tattoos from that party and some new pals to revisit whenever it was we came back.
Finally, 6 months later, we were back. It felt like coming home. After so many nights in our apartments in Vancouver talking endlessly about all the things we were going to do and see when we finally hit the road for good, the salt flats were a familiar face. A reminder that after all the planning and talking in circles, we were actually doing this.
Words by: Kyla Trethewey
Start reading from our first day on the road or see all of our travel posts.