Dust rose into the air as my Goodyear Wrangler tires hit the desert floor. I quickly ratcheted through six gears on a long stretch of well-graded dirt road as tumbleweeds rolled wistfully over the abandoned rail line next to me.

Getting the Jeeps out of the barn and into their natural habitat is a rite of passage each spring. It felt like home again, out amid the sand, sagebrush and juniper trees!

Utah’s West Desert has long beckoned us, from the Pony Express Trail to wild mustangs and the Dugway geode beds. Today was just a warmup ride for the season ahead, heading down from Lehi and Saratoga Springs along the western shoreline of Utah Lake to Elberta, home of what must be the world’s most photographed Sinclair station.

I pulled onto a siding, stopping along a long-abandoned rail line with wooden ties extending out from under a cover of sagebrush. The line headed straight as an arrow to the northwest, starting a climb up into the foothills of the Tintic Range.

The Tintic Range Railroad put down these rails in 1891, hauling silver and iron ore between Eureka and Springville, south of Provo. By 1899, the Tintic Mining District had some of the top-producing mines in Utah. 

The Elberta Slant Road parallels the route of the railroad line to the northwest with a straight shot of four miles through cattle grazing land to the mouth of Pinyon Canyon, gaining 700 feet of elevation. There, the old railroad line made an improbable small loop through a tunnel.

While it’s hard to grasp it driving in a Jeep today, the loop picked up another 100 feet of gain before continuing upwards past the Pinyon Queen and Central Standard mines. By the time the rail line reached The Summit just outside Eureka, it had reached over 6,600 feet above sea level — a 2,000-foot climb from where we began.

The abandoned Tintic Tunnel is very driveable today. Coming in from the east, I followed the old railbed over a now grassy spine, through a narrow approach that provided a small skills test, and into the unknown darkness of the cave-like tunnel. With my eyes adjusted to the bright daylight, the edge of the tunnel entrance was a leap of faith. I put the tires over the edge, quickly adjusting to the darkness and the rough blasted-out texture of the walls and ceilings.

It is a huge tunnel, with towering ceilings. It was hard to imagine how the ore cars of the Tintic Range Railroad wound their way through the tunnel and down to the valley.

If you have a four-wheel drive, there’s a nice little short track up to a lookout spot atop the mine tunnel, offering views out across Utah Lake and all the way to Mt. Timpanogos.

Continuing on to the west, you’ll pass old mines, the site of an old railroad trestle, and another tunnel, though it’s been closed to access. It’s a great area for off-road exploration.

Back on pavement, driving down Main Street in Eureka (population 657), you are surrounded by history. The town, originally known as Ruby Hollow, was incorporated in 1892, when the railroad came to the East Tintic Mountains. Eureka went on to become the financial center of the Tintic Mining District.

It was a memorable morning in the desert. But soon it was time to head back to civilization.

DETAILS

Drive: The Elberta Slant Road is on S.R. 68 (Redwood Road extended south), a mile north of the famous Elberta Sinclair Station. Plan on about a 90-minute drive from Park City via Provo Canyon.

Vehicle: Most of the route from S.R. 68 up to the tunnel access is driveable with the family Subaru. Unless you have a little higher clearance, I would hike the last quarter mile. This is a super easy route with a Jeep Wrangler.

Trail Info: Check out the trail on trailsoffroad.com, and download the GPX track to your maps on gaiagps.com. You can easily spend an hour or two on this trail. But also checkout nearby trails like Little Moab.

Kids: Study up on the history of the Tintic Range Railroad in advance. There are some great websites with detailed information about the origin of the railroad and mining in the Tintic region.

Dining: Tintic Pizza in nearby Eureka is open seven days a week, as is the Iceberg in Santaquin on I-15.