August 31, 2007

August 31, 2007

We start our day with a short hike from our RV thru a paved trail over a lava field. We do it for the exercise. Both of us are pretty jaded with lava by now. It is impressive to see but nothing beats seeing it flow for real or stepping gingerly over it because it is fresh and still warm like in Hawaii.

After leaving Craters of the Moon, we drive southeast on Rt. 26 thru the DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory. We stop at a facility named EBR-1 that bills itself as the world’s first nuclear power plant. Surprisingly for an ex-nuke facility we are allowed to wander freely thru the place on a self-guided tour. EBR-1, short for Experimental Breeder Reactor was built in the early 50’s by Argonne Labs to research peaceful uses of atomic power. EBR-1 was the first nuclear reactor to produce electricity. It is interesting but what I find more so is sitting on a skid in the parking lot. It features a nuclear reactor tied to a jet engine. This monstrosity was a very expensive failed experiment to design a nuclear-powered airplane.

We continue on south out of Idaho into Utah. Since this weekend is a holiday we decide to quit early so we stop at a private park in Brigham City, UT. Good thing as we got the last spot available.