Heinrich Lienhard tells about leaving the Wasatch Mountains and heading toward some reddish brown mountain:

"On August 8 we left the Wasatch Mountains to our left or to our rear and set out in a southwesterly direction toward another reddish brown mountain [the Oquirrh Mountains], which in the exceedingly bright and clear morning air appeared to be hardly 6 miles away, though before this day was over we could testify that it was fully twice that distance. Ten miles on across a plain brought us to a swampy section, where bulrushes and a little rank marsh grass grew, through which the road yet took us. The water was salty and unpalatable, so that the stock refused it. Two miles farther on, we arrived at the foot of the mountain, where a large, crystalline spring, somewhat warm and a little brackish, welled out of the ground. We halted here a short time, so that our stock might gain a little rest. Where the spring broke out of the ground, it formed a beautiful basin, in which, not even taking off our clothes, several of us bathed. In the vicinity of this spring stood an immense, isolated, rounded rock under which was a cave [Dead Man's Cave], and those going into it found a human skeleton. ..."

After visiting the cave turn around and go back to 201. We will continue on westward for 4.3 miles past the KCC smelter with its 1200 foot stack to the great Salt Lake view area. Notice the bulrushes on the right and left of the road. This is a wet area so the trail would still be over at the foot of the mountain. Lienhard again:

"... We passed along the occasionally marshy shore at the south end of the Salt Lake and camped finally at a large spring at the foot of the mountains [Lake Point], the water of which was slightly brackish. An expanse of swampy meadowland here separated us from the lake. We must have made about 6 miles this afternoon."

We continue on around the point and take I-80 exit # 99 to TA Travel Center. Get on the inside lane and after crossing the interstate structure we will make a left hand turn on to the service & frontage road which heads back northeast. Traveling 0.7 miles we see a house on the right hand side and north of the house is a spring with its water running over a concrete weir. The water from this spring forms the little lake between the service road and the freeway. The emigrants had to go on the east side of this spring. The pond of water on the left side of the road is from the spring.

Continue on this road (which is the Lincoln Highway and is now called Lake Shore Drive) that goes around a bend and then south for 1.3 miles, where you will see a wire gate on the right hand side that says "no trespassing". The Ensign Ranches own this property and have given us permission to access the rail post which is over by the group of Chinese Elms to the southwest. The author of this paper believes the trees have grown up in a dried up spring bed. Note how the trees are all grouped together in a slight depression. No other trees are growing outside of this bunch.

The post is setting in a distinct rut or depression which goes past the trees and into the next field where it fades out in the field. The plaque on the rail post reads:

The ruts in this field are about 250 feet from the road. When the weeds and grass are cut you can trace the distinct ruts which start some 2 to 300 hundred feet north and continue through the east end of the trees and on to the south about 300 feet, disappearing in the field.

A long time resident who lived north and across the street, informed us that all of the area west of the big ditch, which is just to the west, was nothing but wet ground & grass land when he first came here then pumping of the ground water lowered the water table and dried up some springs and the wet ground, making it available for farming. We also received information that there were emigrant graves near the trail ruts in this field. Archeologist searched by digging several trenches for the graves on two occasions but were unsuccessful in locating them.

Heinrich Lienhard wrote in his diary: "On August 9 we continued our journey westward, to round the south end of the lake. Ripstein an American named Bunzel and I walked some distance ahead of our wagons and came to a place where the road passed close to the lake. The morning was so delightfully warm and the quick clear water, without any animal life, so inviting that we soon resolved to take a salt water bath. . . ."

Lienhard goes on to tell of his experience of floating & swimming in the lake and the consequence of dry salt on their bodies.

Apparently Lienhards company left the main trail at lake point where the A/T travel buildings are and took a course west on a gravel spit or bar formed by the waters of Lake Bonneville. The bar is some 10 to 20 feet above the beach of the lake. If you look to the west you will note some large abandoned grey and blue colored buildings. This is the abandoned Hardy Salt Plant which sits on the gravel bar. The author has followed a gravel road on this bar west around the edge of the lake for some six miles. This was probably the route Lienhard had taken close to the lake which would be some 1.5 miles north from Adobe Rock, the springs there and the main trail.

Leave the rail post area and return to the paved road. The road is the Transcontinental Lincoln Highway that went through here after 1913.

Turn right on the road and drive south 0.2 miles to the next street which is Sunset Road then turn right again and drive by an old church and school 0.5 miles to Mountain View Drive. Turn left and go south on Mt View Road 0.4 miles until you come to a cross road stop sign. We will take Center Street that angles to the right [southwest] follow this road to a stop sign by a church then straight up the hill and down until you come to a bend in the road to the right. Just to the east on the north side of this gravel road is a trail depression. A 1856 GLO survey map shows a variance of the trail turning to the west. KCC, without knowing it, excavated the ground north and east of here tearing out some pristine trail depressions. The GLO map also shows a trail going west to the old mill that was being constructed in 1850 and another trail south.

Notice the prominent rock outcropping on your right [north] this is ADOBE ROCK so named because of a adobe house built here by Stansbury for his herders in 1849-50. Reed states in his journal supplement published in the Springfield Illinois Journal, December 9, 1847 that:

"...We overtook Mr. Hastings at a place we called Black Rock [probably Adobe Rock], south end of Salt Lake, leaving McCutcheon [Pike] and Stanton here, their horses having failed. I obtained a fresh horse from the company Hastings was piloting, and started on my return to our company, with Mr. Hastings. ..."

Another variance of the trail on the 1856 GLO map shows a trail going on the north side of adobe rock to the springs where the trees and ranch are west of Adobe Rock and west of Highway U-36 . Historians feel that these springs are where James Reed caught up with Lansford Hastings and had him go back to show him the way over the Wasatch Mountains.