Tag Archives: interstate

Beowawe

informational, nature, personal, photograph, recreation, scenic, travel, , , ,

Places that you may never have heard of

I’ve made countless cross country trips by car usually traveling our Interstate Highway system. When I pass by a “strange” name, I’ll jot the name down and do some research on the place when I return home.

One of these places is Beowawe.

Bewawe is located in eastern Nevada a few miles south of Interstate 80.

Some say that its name is derived from the Paiute language  who inhabited the area and means gate. But there are several other interesting and humorous tales about the origin of the town’s name which you can read here.

In the late 1800s, nearby mining operations sent the ore to Beowawe for shipment by rail. The railroad also brought supplies for the ranching operations. For decades it remained a small town to support the nearby ranching industry.

During the 1940s and 1950s several visits by the USGS to examine the hot springs and geysers in the Whirlwind Valley area where Beowawe is located. Researcher Nell Murbarger discovered that this “remote pocket in the mountains of north central Nevada with a colorful terrace and boiling pools provide an amazing spectacle for the few people who venture over the treacherous road that leads to this spot.”

Geyser Field in Whirlwind Valley, Bewawe – Photo Credit: Oleh Melnyk, 1978

In the late 1950s tests were conducted to determine if these natural hydrothermal features were capable of generating electrical power. Consequently a plant was built to capture the hot water and steam. Unfortunately the geysers of Whirlwind Valley disappeared with the plant’s construction.

BeowaweGeothermalNV
Photo Credit: “Plazak, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
 
Resources: Murbarger, Nell, “Geysers of Whirlwind Valley” Desert Magazine, January 1956, Vol. 18, Issue 1.  
To visit Beowawe take exit 261 off of I-80 and drive a few miles south.

Still Interested?

Here are a few more places that you may never have heard of –

Argenta, Nevada
Aragonite, Utah
Dunphy, Nevada
Vedauwoo, Wyoming
Wamsutter, Wyoming

Aragonite, Utah

informational, personal, travel, , , , , , , ,

Places that you may never have heard of

Due to my love of traveling I’ve made countless cross country trips by car.

Our interstate highway system gives us easy access to most of the USA. On the road, I’ll sometimes see an exit with a name that I don’t recognize. Places with colorful names stick in my mind. I’d jot down the name and when I get home search to find out about the place I passed. earlier.

Interstate 80 in Utah

Aragonite in the high desert of north central Utah is one such place. Now a ghost town, it was originally set up in the early 1900s to mine the crystalline mineral of the same name. Buildings were erected there to house and supply the miners. These mining operations lasted only a short time but later reopened to quarry mine for limestone. One report says that this mining included construction of shafts and deep holes so if you visit the area, watch your step. There is no longer is any mining in here.

A Desert Remote Locality

You can also tell that Aragonite is remote by the surrounding localities. To the west is the Utah Test and Training Range. This is a military base where supersonic flights are routinely conducted. To the southwest is the Dugway Proving Grounds an Army facility where chemical and biological weapons testing are performed.

Not far from the townsite is the Aptus Incinerator. It is used mainly for hazardous waste disposal including PCBs. The operating company is Clean Harbors which claims “ample on-site storage capacity allows for acceptance of large volumes of material before treatment. The site can also be easily accessed by rail or truck, which keeps transport costs down. And, an on-site lab assures timely approval and efficient processing of shipments.” Clean Harbors has been cited multiple times for violating EPA regulations.

Sometimes places are deliberately remote to keep people away from them.

I found that aside from its interesting name Aragonite’s history and surroundings are a worthwhile stop the next time I’m in Utah.

Still Interested

More of my places that you may never have heard of are in

Argenta, Nevada

Beowawe, Nevada

Dunphy, Nevada

Vedauvoo, Wyoming

Wamsutter, Wyoming

Wamsutter, WY

informational, personal, travel, , , , , , ,

Places that you may never have heard of

Due to my love of traveling I’ve make countless cross country trips by car.

Our amazing Interstate Highway system takes us to so many destinations. But along the way I might see a sign with a name that I don’t recognize. These places with unfamiliar names get my attention and when I return home I may take the time to find out more about this locality.

Towards the middle of Wyoming there’s a small town called Wamsutter. I learned that Wamsutter is located in a geologic area known as the Great Divide Basin. This is an area in which rain does not drain into any of the oceans. Instead to the north and east the North Platte watershed flows to the Atlantic or Gulf of Mexico while to the south and west, the Green River watershed drains to the Pacific or Gulf of California.


Interstate 80, exit 173
Historically this area has been home to the Shoshone and Ute native American tribes. During the 1860’s other settlers moved to the area to help build and manage the transcontinental railroad. While its population is small, sheep and horse ranching has been an important activity for many years.

an industrial building on east side of town
Today the area is noted as a natural resource community with a small industry based on oil and natural gas extraction. The BP Corporation has been operating there since about 2000.

parking area with loads of semis

If you’re ever in the area – stop in Wamsutter to look around and to refuel your car.

Still Interested

More of my places that you may never have heard of are here:

Argenta, Nevada
Aragonite, Utah
Beowawe, Nevada
Dunphy, Nevada
Vedauvoo, Wyoming