Vickie Nielsen
Vickie runs a web site with photographs of gravestones in Utah. Vickie and her husband Barry made an impressive eleven hour round trip in their pick-up on a hot, dry day to take many of the photographs that appear here on the web site. Here is Vickie’s account of the trip:
“After about 100 miles going west from our home in Payson UT, we turned north onto a gravel road. It was 29 miles out to the Gandy area. There were about four farms in the area. I don’t know what they farmed, it looked like sage brush and dirt to me. There were a few groups of trees. The only old structure we saw was the cabin in the photos. We thought there might be some kind of a sign or historical plaque, but there wasn’t.
We came back to the pavement and then went out west again about 60 miles to a small Nevada town of Ely, where we looked for two headstones I needed, but did not find them.
After returning back the same 60 miles we then turned south on the same road Gandy was on, and went 8 miles to Garrison. So, that would make 38 miles between them.
The cemetery was easy to spot, next to a small church. The town had a post office and about 3 homes on the main road. That was all we could see. Don’t know why anyone would, or could, live there.
To get to Fillmore we went south, around a small mountain and then east and north. It was about an hour and a half’s drive. All pretty barren area. Utah has a lot of that. But we have a lot of nice places too.
We got there at sundown. I don’t know how my pictures will turn out. We like these kinds of adventures, but was pretty tired when we finally got home about 8:30 pm.
A fantastic achievement Vickie & Barry!
Read more about Gandy, the crystal caves, Gandy mountain and the warm springs: Stella Lake, the Snake Valley and Wheeler Peak
Check out Tony Cowley’s photographs of Snake Valley here: The Snake Valley
Gandy Utah now has a page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gandy-Utah/180061352019624