My Utah BFF, Carolyn Tuttle, and I planned a trip to Kamas, Utah. Carolyn, a recent widow, wanted to show me the area and also wanted a “trip down memory lane.” She and her husband, Howard, had made the trip on many weekends and had enjoyed the small towns, reservoirs, farm animals and mountains along the way. Carolyn told me that they usually timed their trips to coincide with lunch at a small restaurant in Kamas. So the two of us also timed our trip for lunch in Kamas.

I picked up Carolyn at 9:00 on Sunday June 11 at her condo near Emigration Canyon. We chose Sunday for our outing because Sunday traffic in this area is minimal. Most are at church or temple. Then we set off, climbing the curves and s-turns through beautiful Emigration Canyon among many Sunday cyclists.

The Internet tells me that “Emigration Canyon was significant in early Utah history. It was the original route used by pioneers entering the area and was part of the Hastings Cutoff route used by the Donner Party in 1846. Also it was the location where the Mormon Pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley in 1847.

“Emigration and Parleys Canyons have provided access to the Salt Lake Valley since pioneer times in the mid 1800s. In 1846, the Donner Party carved their way through Emigration Canyon on their way to California. In 1847, Mormon pioneers followed the Donner Party trail but cleared a way through the thicket instead of going over Donner Hill. Trail markers show the “Pioneer Trail” from Little Dell Reservoir, across Little Mountain Summit and into Emigration Canyon.
     “Wagons were unable to pass through Parleys Canyon until 1850 when Parley Pratt cleared the last three miles through a deep, winding gorge with a rough bottom. Stagecoaches began to use the canyon in 1858; the Pony Express in 1860, but the services were dropped by 1869 when the Transcontinental Railroad was completed.”

We both had our binoculars, bird book, in-car snacks and drinks. One of the snacks that I brought was a large bunch of green grapes. Tasty! I was the driver. Carolyn had the map, knew the area, and was navigator.  

We stopped at a couple of viewpoints, scanned for birds and other wildlife, and took “Picture This” photos of wildflowers we did not recognize or could not remember the names of, including those below:

We stopped at Echo Reservoir and scanned for birds but saw nary a one. The reservoir appeared full but had much limb, twig, and wood debris in the water along its shoreline. This from the exceptional spring runoff we decided. The mountainous areas this year had a very large snowpack and it was still melting and swamping places along our route. “Typically, Utah's snowpack peaks around the first of April, with a 30-year median of 15.8 inches of water. This year (2023), the peak was 30 inches, breaking the previous record high and making 2023 Utah's deepest snowpack on record.” (Internet)

All this water is good, though, because our planet is getting drier and drier. In fact at this writing, the Great Salt Lake and Lake Powell are at their lowest ever, and much of eastern Canada is fighting multiple wildfires, the smoke from these fires blanketing the U.S. east coast.

There were very few birds at roadside, in the air, or on the reservoirs.  On, near, and over the reservoirs we saw only 1) White Pelicans, 2) Mallards, 3) Lesser Scaup, 4) Red-winged Blackbird, 5) Grackles, 6) Canada Geese with fuzzy young’uns, 7) Tree Swallows, 8) Barn Swallows, and gulls. We couldn’t identify the gulls in flight so not sure what species they were—probably California gulls as it is our state bird. At roadside we saw 9) Black-billed Magpies, 10) a Black Vulture dining on roadkill,11) Mourning Doves (on electric wires), 12) American robins, and in a waterside thicket a Yellow Warbler (13).

The hillsides and roadsides were dotted with farms, horse farms being the most prevalent but also some cattle, sheep, and even a goat farm.

When we got to the small town of Kamas, we parked on the main street opposite Carolyn’s lunch choice: The Mirror Lake Diner. She and Howard had eaten here many times before. It was a great choice. The place was crowded with diners, but we were quickly seated and as quickly waited upon. We both chose a turkey sandwich and fries. Delicious, but a mistake. We should have ordered one meal and split the sandwich. We each took half a sandwich and half the fries home in a to-go box.

Every other Monday—after my stint at the Tracy Aviary which is downtown and closer to Carolyn’s house—the two of us meet for lunch at the Shanghai Restaurant on 1300. We have learned to not only order one meal and share it, but to order the same meal each Monday. We have tried other dishes but keep coming back to the Vegetarian Moo Goo Gai Pan with brown rice, and for me a pot of green tea. Even though it is only one meal, we each take home a loaded to-go box. American portions are HUGE!

At the Mirror Lake Diner, Carolyn gave me a belated 81st birthday card, treated me to lunch, and bought me a birthday brownie for dessert. Half the brownie joined the half turkey sandwich in my to-go box.

The card, featuring a group of wading flamingos, contained the following sentiment:
Belated but heartfelt, with warmest wishes for every day, and huge admiration for all of your doings, travels, writings, and talents, plus endless gratitude for your friendship!   Love, Carolyn

Inside the card was a newspaper clipping from 2001 about“Pink Floyd, the Chilean flamingo who flew the coop in 1988 from Salt Lake City’s Tracy Aviary.” Beneath the photo is the following caption: “Pink Floyd standing with some of his less colorful friends at the Great Salt Lake near Saltair. The bird has returned to the lake every winter since his escape.”

On the back of the clipping was the following poem by Carolyn’s husband, Howard Tuttle, now deceased:

Pink Floyd the Flamingo
Fled the Worldly World 

His aviary abandoned,
Pink Floyd has flown the coop,
never to return

Strawberry whiskey on strawberry stilts
a fluffed up wink of pink
a pointer that nobody reads
you waited all your life for just one moment to be free.

Gathered to a clutch of nerves;
did you take flight from a world’s night,
and is it so, bold bird,
that freedom is the deepest healing of the deepest art?

Shall we, too, fly the frenetic world,
not seek the luring place that others hold,
nor row to brass gongs on laboring craft? 

In your refuge
have you become who you truly are,
and do you dance, and dip, and dive,
and pitch all halters free?

If so, they’ll think you are a rolly boy
above our briny sea.

Such a touching tribute to my 81 years 

After lunch we decided not to continue on to Mirror Lake, 21 miles farther on. We could see cloud build-up and darkening skies. However, on the way to Kamas, we had passed the turn to Smith and Morehouse Reservoir that I recognized. There is an old-fashioned diner on the corner. Sadly, this diner is being overhauled and its owners are adding several extensions and stories to it. Anyhow, I had been to Smith and Morehouse Reservoir several times with Jessica. Carolyn was not familiar with the reservoir, so we drove to it. Carolyn did not actually get to see it, however, because there was a fee to enter. So, Carolyn, here is a photo. We will explore it another time.

 Now for the scary finale to our day of exploration. We were on 80 near Park City when all traffic was funneled to two lanes and we were told that the exit to 40 was closed. Then a fierce rain and hailstorm descended. The skies turned black; the rain bucketed down. Cars were wallowing up to their hubcaps in the flooded road. Even with my wipers going full tilt front and back, it was difficult to see because of the fierce downpour and the truck and other vehicle spray. I followed the example of a car behind me and turned on my blinking hazard flashers.

Suddenly my windshield started to fog up. I could see next to nothing! I shrieked at Carolyn: “Help me! Help me! Clear the windshield!” I could not take my eyes off the road to play with the windshield vents. It took Carolyn a moment but she eventually pressed the right button and the windshield cleared—minimally.

Then it started to hail, large hail but seemingly soft because when it hit the hood it seemed to crumble apart. I found a spot where I could pull off the highway into a gas station. So I pulled off and under the station canopy to try to protect the car from the hail. Ironically only a few days before I had bought out my lease and the car was now mine—no hail insurance but I did have a new 5-year extended warranty.

Carolyn ducked into the CS to ask about the road closing ahead. She found out that our exit was open so we got back on and made our way to Carolyn’s, with much trepidation and anxiety. Water was rushing down the gutters of the road to Carolyn’s condo.

At Carolyn’s, we both took a long breath. Though Carolyn invited me in to collect myself, I was ready to be home, so said good-bye to this dear friend, plugged in the GPS, and started for Sandy. I had not driven two miles before the rain slacked and then stopped. When I got to Sandy, it was dry and sunny. Geesh!

So ends the saga of our day trip to Kamas.