Day 7 of 16-The Great Salt Lake and Mystic Hot Springs

Morning got to baking temp in the sleeper berth again, so forced myself awake with only 4 hours sleep, just as folks were heading after breakfast for a swim in the Great Salt Lake. This is a very scenic spot, though we were the only ones around. Had a bathroom with showers (pay by the minute), so I fed the meter and took a nice long one and read a bit before falling asleep again outside. 

At about 11am we took off for the town of Provo to buy camp supplies and get lunch. I couldn’t believe the price of a fresh-made burrito (yes with meat!) and beans and rice was only $3.95, cheaper than my showers! Back in the bus for a 2 hour drive and a short nap on the way, though having internet was a distraction from sleep.

Camp was Mystic Hot Springs in the town of Monroe, near Richmond, UT. Hah! This resort is owned by a graphic artist who did a lot of artwork for the Grateful Dead and psychedelic posters in the 60’s. With the money he made, he bought this ‘resort’, which has natural hot springs made into several pools and individual clawfoot bathtubs. There is also an office/club house where a rock concert was performed both open air and inside (most of the night). There were a number of old school busses made into “mobile homes” and painted hippy style, as well as legit trailers. The semi-permanent campers behind us had ‘leather feathers’ for sale and a giant blow up object that looked like a party monster. Our resident ex-GDead groupie checked it out and said this was an artist’s creation for Burning Man of a vegetation with 4 different lethal plants.

It was so nice to sit in the tubs under the stars after a dinner of butterfly pasta in mushroom sauce and salad, followed by (purchased) birthday cake for one of the German girls turning 30.  Gratefully the music was quietly contained indoors during my tub soak and sleep in my tent was only interrupted briefly in-between sets by loud campers returning to bed. Somebody was jamming into the wee hours, and I woke up on and off, but thankfully slept through the night feeling relatively well-rested in the am.

In the morning I took a better look around at the art, and realized this must be the source of the “mystic” font I bought to put together a 60’s music poster for Pops.