Tooele County landscape offers diverse entertainment

The impression of many living along the Wasatch Front is the western side of the state, which would include Tooele County, is dry and barren, made only for jackrabbits, lizards and race cars.

Failing, of course, to scratch below the surface.

What you know

The county is much more diverse than most people realize. The Oquirrh Mountains, to the east, can match tree-for-tree anything in the Wasatch Range. The tallest mountain in the Oquirrhs is Lowe Peak at 10,590 feet.

The range, 30 miles long, is home to one of the state's largest elk herds and some of the state's largest bull elk. It also holds some of the state's more scenic and historic canyons, such as Settlement Canyon and Reservoir; Dry Canyon where the ghost town Jacob City is located; and Soldier Canyon, once a hotbed for early mining.

The lands to the west are, in fact, a desert. But this arid land holds more mysteries, history and attractions than do some of the more mountainous regions.

Take, for example, the old Pony Express route that runs through the county east to west.

Nowhere are the life and hardships of the early Pony Express riders more evident than the section between Faust and the town of Ibapah on the Utah/Nevada border.

The only thing that has changed since the first riders took to the saddle back in 1860 is time. The land is as harsh and unforgiving as 145 years ago.

The original route went from St. Joseph, Mo., to Sacramento, Calif., or roughly 1,900 miles. Each rider was responsible for 60 or 120 miles. (Stations were set 60 miles apart.) Monthly pay was $120 to $125. The average time it took to deliver a letter the entire way was 10 days.

Today, the route turns to a gravel road at Faust and stays that way into Nevada. There are three stations along the route. The one at Simpson Springs features a replica of the original station. There are remnants of old buildings at the Boyd and Canyon stations.

The Pony Express was in business for only 19 months, but in that time it captured the hearts and imagination of America.

In the northwestern corner of the county is the Bonneville Salt Flats, made famous by anything with wheels and the potential to travel faster than anything of its kind.