Nephi-Juab County Seat

Nephi is a name from the Book of Mormon.  However, Juab is a Ute Indian word.  They are both exotic words, that's for certain.  Nephi began its existence in 1851, a mere 4 years after Brigham Young declared "This is the place" upon the Saints' arrival in Utah.  Juab is the County--it's about 3,300 sq. miles--125 miles east to west yet only 25 miles north to south.  It goes clear out to Nevada and the Goshute Indian Reservation.  The east county line is the Mt. Nebo ridgeline.

We spent two hours walking in Nephi.  The snow's pretty deep in the unplowed sidewalks.  We thanked a couple of people for shoveling their walks--most walks haven't been cleared this winter.  There is some of the "character" left of Old Nephi--but not much.  We will put together a photo album later tonight.

We visited City Hall and the Library.  Each Utah county has its own definitive history book.  You can go to any Utah library and ask to see a copy of the "county history" and the librarians know right away what you are talking about and they produce it instantly.  The Utah Legislature paid each county to produce these books back for the state centennial in the 1990's.  They are truly awesome and amazing and no other of the 49 states has anything like it.  Hooray, Utah!

Well, anyway, I sat down and pretty much skimmed the whole history of Juab County and got the geology, pre-history, Native Americans, Spanish, mountain man, Mark Twain, Mormon, Pony Express, militarym, railroad, mining, agriculture and current day synopsis of the place.  It's a lot more diverse here in Juab that I realized and there's a few places that we like to call "come back spots."

We now realize that the Safari would make a great "base" for exploring Juab County, especially the lonely western parts.  Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge is DEFINITELY a come back spot.  The Rockwell Natural Area of the Little Sahara Sand Dunes is yet another.  The old mining town of Eureka in the Tintic Mining District is already calling us.

Back on Memorial Day weekend, when we were Secret Shoppers for the Forest Service, we got to stay near Utah Lake at Provo for 9 days.  One of our official trips was up and over the Mount Nebo Loop down to Nephi and then return to Provo.  we actually got paid mileage for that trip!  Anyway, we learned today that federal stimulus money has rebuilt the campgrounds up on that loop--they really needed a facelift, that's for sure.  We're looking forward to a camping trip up there one of these years.

We went into the NAPA store and bought two cans of windshield de-icer.  You can' buy that stuff in Arizona!  It was great to find them and the price was good, too.

Perhaps the oddest thing about walking around Nephi was all the weird looks we got from drivers.  You would have thought that two space aliens were on the loose in Nephi.  It's pretty obvious that hardly anyone walks anywhere in this city.  There are almost no footprints in the uncleared sidewalks.

Meanwhile, back at the motel, I had to move the truck so they could plow the parking lot.  That turned into a real adventure as teh side streets here are slicker than snot.  I almost got stuck trying to make a u-turn and had to go a few blocks out of my way to avoid getting stuck.  Meanwhile, I almost pulled out in front of a local loco.  He was purposely doing four-wheel side slides down one of the streets.  You know how to do that?   You turn the vehicle and hit the brakes and commence to slide sideways for awhile, then you countersteer and do it on the other side.  He was on the thin edge of losing control and narrowly missed me as I waited unsuspecting at the stop sign while he flew by.  WHEW!  I guess that's what they do for fun here in the Juab County seat.

Our next trip out will be in the truck as the Main Street is very clear--UDOT has been back and forth seemingly countless times --I even got hit by a flying glob of snow from one of the plows--luckily it didn't hit me in the face--I really felt it on my arm!  Walk at your own risk here.

We will post up more on Nephi later today.  Gotta go do some more exploring.

Remember, you can click on the small pix to see larger versions.
Cheers, J&S