Picto Diary - 24, 25 July 2019 - Green River.
Above: Red Tail Hawk. North Forty. Park City, UT. 24 July 2019.
Seen by Deux Magots Walkers.
Above: Markco and tow truck driver Scott, with Markco's 2007 BMW K1200GT motorcycle, on tow truck. Hannah, UT. 24 July 2019.
Out and about on the Duc.
Some rides don't go as planned.
Markco and his BMW K1200 GT en panne. Scott and AAA to the rescue.
Above: Markco at Bamberger Monument. US 191, Duchesne County, UT. 25 July 2019.
Out and about on the Duc with Markco.
Simon Bamberger. First, and only, Jewish governor of Utah. 1918 to 1922.
Child of the book, and former Utah resident, Markco, honors the popular, one term, governor. — with Mark Cohen at Bamberger Monument.
Above: Duc in front of Ray's Tavern. Green River, UT. 25 July 2019.
With Markco (in image).
I get - and like - the funkiness, the lack of a full bar license, and the simple burger, pork chop, salad and fries shtick. The place is deservedly iconic as a way station in the desert.... but swamp cooler for 94 degree outdoor temps? Dirty, antiquated bathrooms? Slovenly dressed, stubble bearded employee out futzing around in courtyard filled with junk? Nuh uh. Stretching their putative cachet a bit to thin.
Disappointed (in the heat) for first time by Ray's.
Time to file Ray's away with another overrated, putatively iconic, Utah disappointment: Hell's Backbone Grill in Boulder — eating lunch with Mark Cohen at Ray's Tavern.
Above: Bishop. Green River, UT. 25 July 2019.
Until 1921, the river, starting in the Colorado Rockies, which formed the confluence with the Green River into the Colorado River in southeastern Utah, was called The Grand River.
In one of the most egregious injustices of river history, Colorado pols, in 1921, were successful in having the Grand renamed, Colorado. This meant that the riverway from the source in the Colorado Rockies, to the Sea of Cortez, was called the Colorado River.
The Green River got screwed. River naming protocol says that it is the longest of the tributaries of the lower river that should denote the entire river's name. The Green is 150 miles longer than the upper tributary of the Colorado (the former Grand River).
Accordingly, the Colorado River, for its entire length, should really be called, the Green River.
Image shows Bishop offering commiseration to the Green River, 30 miles above its confluence with the Colorado. Bishop is ticked about this injustice done to the Green....and standing here he senses the Green's angst. A true travesty. So sad.
In the distance, The Tavaputs Plateau, aka The Book Cliffs. Neil Armstrong noted seeing the Book Cliffs from his Apollo space capsule as it orbited the earth before its slingshot launch from earth orbit to the moon in 1969. — at John Wesley Powell River History Museum.
Addendum:
What a nice way to bid Aunt Joyce good bye. Steve I know she meant a lot to you. 89 wonderful years.
El Contador,
Devon, UK