The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1921-11-10
Overland Trip to California Is
Much Enjoyed by Former
Yale Family
lContinued from last week.

This days drive was to four cor
ner town called Park Valley. We
had some concrete, some gravel,
graded dirt and natural prairie
roads. Dirt and prairie roads
were very rough. From Ogden to
Brigham the country was fine,
irrigated, but from there mostly
sage brush and jack rabbits near
ly as thick as the sage brush. To
make the day really complete, l
upset the auto into a deep ditch,
but as | was driving slow and easy
it did not hurt any of us, only
bent the top. This night we
camped on roadside and had five
Michigan machines, 2 from Yale,
z from Detroit. and l from Grand
Rapids-quite Michigander
camp, you see. One of the mach
ines, a Detroit car, stayed with us
from there to Los Angeles-a Mr.
and Mrs. Donley.
Sept. S-We again hit the trail,
and it was from Salt Lake City to
California, the old Overland trail
that we followed. We crossed the
state line into Nevada at 2:35.
More sage brush country and
only natural prairie road or trails,
some gravel stretches, but more
alkali dirt. Arrived in camp at
Cobreae, a four-corner town in a
forsaken place, if there is such a
thing. Sent Ruth to the store for
some groceries, and the clerk
stood and looked at her for some
time before he offered to wait on
her. Then he said she would
have to excuse him, as they sell
dom saw a stranger in that part
OF the country.
Had wind storm at night that
got everybody out oe bed but did
no damage.
Sept. 9-Leaving Cobrea at 9:15
we again drove through a sage
brush country, all but a few miles
between Wells and Deeth, of fine
irrigated country, wheat and al
falfa. Saw snow on mountains
all day. Got into camp at place
called Carlin at about six o'clock.
1t was a small place on the South
ern Pacific railroad. A merchant
here told us they had so many
tramps every day that they had a
regular bread line. Twenty-sev-
en- arrived on one freight train
We had a light frost that night.
Sept. love took a mountain
trail for about 20 miles after we
left Carlin, which was good, but
heavy grades all the way, anc
very narrow. Then we struck in
to the real desert, the place you
read and hear so much about. We
drove for IL miles through alkal
desert, where there was no roaC
but trails-so many you were pur
zled to know which one to take
There was no choice; some tool
one some took others. The rut!
were so deep and so many anC
the dust so heavy that we coult
only drive from 3 to 5 miles al
hour most of the way. We occas
ionally hit 8 or 10 miles for |
rod or two, but this was the speet
limit. After this II miles We hat
al miles of natural road wher
we would have a short stretch o
this terrible alkali dust and ruts
then a stretch of good roads
about half and half. When W
arrived at Battle Mountain w
filled our gas tanks and the gar
age man told us to take a detoul
as the main trail was very baC
Well, | am very thankful we di
not take the main trail ie it wa
any worse than the detour. TIL
first ten miles was like the frs
IL miles | tried to describe. The
we struck an old railroad grad
built of alkali dirt and gravel, bu
the gravel was all gone. and tn
alkali, well. l don't know whethe
there was any bottom to it or no
but to say it was terrible was pu
ting it mild. | don't know no wi
describe it. 1t was so deep. S
rough and so narrow you coul
not turn out or around, but jul
simply go ahead at 3 miles a
hour on low, and once in a viii
you could speed up to 5 mile
which was the limit. We had
few miles of this with an occa
sional stretch Of good railroa
grade, but the last few miles b.
fore we reached camp was q fir