Western Railroad Discussion > Lakeside, UT question.

A friend and I were out in Utah for the Big Boy and decided to visit Lakeside.  Doing research on TO most posts referenced the location as the top of the hill with radio tower with a passable but steep road to the top.  We attempted to drive up the hill to the towers only to find the road blocked by a pile of rocks about half way up blocking the road.  Upon returning to the bottom we noticed a person standing on the next ridge to the east.  Thinking we were on the wrong hill we found our way around to the east side of the that ridge on a road that got progressively worse until we reached our comfort limit with our small SUV on the rocks sticking out of the road and continued on foot.  We found the other person's large SUV that had also reached their limit about 1/4 mile further. After a mile walk we reached the crest of the ridge at the tracks.  The large SUV belonged to three German rail fans who found their way there using GPS location data from a photo.  We missed two trains getting to the location.  We only stayed for one more train as there was rain on the horizon and didn't want to be out there on wet dirt roads.  

Is the mountain with the tower or the ridge to the east the more common location and is the rock pile a new occurrence?    Also is there an reasonable climb to the east ridge from the west side to avoid the mile walk? 

Thanks
Derek 

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Your top image is impressive !  Thanks for sharing it . --Kelly

In your second shot, just follow the road on this side of the hill shown along the tracks and park at the bottom of the ridge you are standing on off the ROW road.

Posted from iPhone

Sounds like the tower owner put rocks up there. Maybe someone broke into the equipment room

The rock pile across the road to the top of tower hill is pretty new. I have driven up there several times, most recently in Nov. 2017. It’s a great place for photos, so just park and walk up to the top. Take some water, a scanner and your lunch and spend the day.
 
The east ridge is my favorite spot out there, The ascent from the east side is a climb up a blow sand “ramp” about 200 yards or so south of the tracks. It’s a 2 steps forward and 1 step back climb. When I go out there I generally plan to spend the day. Make sure you take a telephoto lens. There is a pretty good road to the ridge that follows some old abandoned quarry tracks and ends right at the west base of the ridge next to the active tracks. Park here, walk along the tracks to the east side of the ridge, go south on the old beach a short distance and you will see the sand “ramp” up the east face of the ridge.
 
That rocky “island” in your 3rd. photo is Strongs Knob, named after William Strong a member of Howard Stansbury’s 1850 exploration of the Great Salt Lake area. The 1st shot shows a train coming across the Rambo Fill on the rock causeway. The fill leads back east to Promontory Point and replaced the wooden trestle built by the Southern Pacific. This is a great photo spot; give it another try. The shot below is not a drone shot!
 
Dick Ebright
Roosevelt, Utah
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/14/19 13:06 by 2ebright.

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They usually put big rocks across a road when locks are cut or a gate keeps getting broken.
What's so hard to understand about no trespassing on private land?

I used to drive up to the top many years ago in my truck.  I guess you can't anymore.  

Many thanks to all you guys who climb the heights forv elevated views like those in this thread and some 4014 threads, where I'll never get due to disability.

Steve Donaldson
Pacific Grove, CA



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/24/19 16:36 by SteveD.