good-times-rollin: Ray's Tavern in Green River

Sunday, September 6, 2015

Crystal Geyser, Ray's Tavern and Melon Mania!

Portal RV Resort
Moab, UT
September 2, 2015

Last week we headed north on Hwy 191 and then west on I 70 towards Green River, UT to a POI we had heard about this past spring.

As many times as we travel these highways and byways, I never tire of the views we see along the way...

Crystal Geyser was our first destination.

East bank of the Green River

This geyser is on the east bank of the Green River and according to google, it is a "rare example of a cold water carbon dioxide driven geyser" and geothermal activity does not play a role in the activity. There is no schedule for when the geyser erupts. I read that it could be 8 to 22 hours between eruptions.

The first written record of Crystal Geyser comes from a report of the Powell Geographic Expedition of 1869, July 13, 1869: " We stop to examine some interesting rocks deposited by mineral springs that at one time must have existed here but are no longer flowing."

The current form of the geyser was created by an exploration well drill in 1935 in an attempt to find oil.

We did see a bubbling event...the pool surrounding the geyser fills with water resulting in a beautiful flow to the river.

As you probably guessed, the geyser did not erupt while we were there. But it was still a great time exploring. And we did work up an appetite!

We were told that a trip to Green River is not complete without a stop at Ray's Tavern for lunch.

Ray's opened in 1943 and has since become a classic for chilled beer, burgers and fries. The grill is behind the bar where burgers are made and flame broiled to order. We chose a booth, but you can sit at the bar.

Ray's claim to fame happened over the years as river expeditions, bikers, and hikers made their way into town. The walls are decorated with framed T-shirts from all over, folded so the advertisement/company shows...pretty cool to read them!

Another bit of trivia about Green River, UT...it just so happens to be the melon growing capital of Utah! Much to my delight, we were there during the picking season. They have a perfect climate protected by the Book Cliffs and good sandy soil that allows for rapid growth and long production periods.

The melon fields had just been picked.
The three families of farmers who grow here admit they are farmers and that marketing is not their thing. Thus, word of mouth is their biggest advertisement. The town was filled with roadside melon markets as we drove down Main Street...the only street in town!

The melons in the center bin are Israeli melons...a very delicate soft meat with a delicious sweet taste. The yellow Canari melons against the back wall are crispy and more tart.

These melons were huge...way too much for us. We did buy a "personal" watermelon with seeds. We were told a pound of seeds to grow the small seedless variety cost about $1400 compared to $20/pound for small watermelons with seeds.