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Lakeside is a Union Pacific Railroad site on the west shore of the Great Salt Lake where the causeway of the Lucin Cut-off meets land. An active rock quarry of the railroad is there, eating away at Lakeside Butte. I like Lakeside because it is off the beaten track and has trains passing through. Lakeside is also part of the only vehicle access route to the Newfoundland Mountains (more on this below).

This gallery has photo taken at Lakeside and along the driving route from Interstate 80. Although my reason for going to Lakeside is serious, some of my photo descriptions are blatantly "un-serious."
Newest uploads are at the BOTTOM of the gallery.

GETTING TO LAKESIDE

The only access is via a county road that runs northward from Interstate 80 Exit 62 all the way to the railroad grade crossing at Lakeside, a distance of 30 miles (48 km). Freeway signs for the exit say "Military Area / Lakeside." Minor signage at the top of the interchange points the way to Lakeside. Signs with road names do not exist.

Stay on the asphalt road for fifteen miles from the freeway. At that point you reach a junction with a dirt/gravel road angling to the right---that is the route to Lakeside. If you miss that turn and stay on the asphalt road, you will enter the Utah Test and Training Range (UTTR), a facility of the U.S. Air Force. Numerous warning signs alert motorists to stay out of the military property.

From that junction the public road continues for 15 more miles to Lakeside with UTTR property on both sides of the road. Signs warn drivers not to leave the road. If the Air Force is disposing of munitions (probably a rare occurrence), this public road will be temporarily closed at the site of a metal gate with a closure sign. The gate is normally open.

Eleven miles from the asphalt/dirt junction you reach the northern boundary of the UTTR and pass back into public land. Not far beyond that, with Lakeside Butte (radio tower) straight ahead, a dirt road angles left and leads to an active railroad quarry. Just beyond that junction is another. Going straight here leads to the top of Lakeside Butte and going right leads to the grade crossing on the far side of the butte.

The grade crossing is the end of the county road. All other roads at Lakeside are probably the private property of Union Pacific Railroad or a mining company that operates evaporation ponds to the west and the north.

On the north side of the railroad track is a dirt road running next to the track. It is railroad property, but the section running westward is open to the public for access to the Newfoundland Mountains. As far as I know, it is the only vehicle access route to those mountains.

ROAD NAMES

The first 13 miles of the route is in Tooele County, starts at the freeway interchange, and is named “Puddle Valley Highway” [Source: Tooele County’s on-line road map]. After the 13-mile point the road crosses into Box Elder County. For the rest of the way to Lakeside, the road is a Box Elder County road named “Lakeside Road.” [Source: Telephone conversation on 15 November 2013 with Bill Gilson, roads department supervisor of Box Elder County.]. These names mean little when driving the route because there are no street signs identifying the roads. The county line is also not marked, at least not obviously.

Commercial and on-line maps I’ve seen do not name the road properly. Google Earth, Google Maps, and some layers of Acme Mapper erroneously call it "Frontage Road" from I-80 northward for a few miles, then give it no name. Benchmark's "Utah Road and Recreation Atlas" (Second Edition) correctly names the Tooele County portion but lacks any name for the Box Elder county portion. DeLorme's "Utah Atlas and Gazetteer" (Third Edition) has no name for the road

Heading east on Interstate 80 in Utah	Turn left for Lakeside (I-80 Exit 62)	When approaching a sensitive military area, obey the warning signs	First view of Puddle Valley	Dust devil
Greetings!	Southern boundary of the UTTR, looking west	I court danger as a matter of principle just to amuse Web surfers	Wide-open spaces	Traveling to Lakeside is not without adventure
Looking northwest at what appear to be four targets in the Utah Test and Training Range (200mm telephoto shot)	Looking southeast at a ridge in the Utah Test and Training Range	Northern boundary of the Utah Test and Training Range	First view of Lakeside Butte	Looking northeast
Strata in the Utah Test and Training Range (land behind the fence is the UTTR)	Bored atop Lakeside Butte	Tower atop Lakeside Butte	Quarrying activity, seen from Lakeside Butte	Evaporation ponds and railroad causeway, seen from Lakeside Butte
Strong's Knob, seen from Lakeside Butte	Lakeside Motel	Eastbound blur at Lakeside	Clothesline? Signal flags? Party decorations?	Train on causeway approaches Lakeside

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Paolo Peggi (aka Bracciodiferro)		19-Jan-2010 10:48
Lol again! BV Paolo

Monte Dodge		04-Aug-2008 11:52
VVVVVVVVVVVVV , nice trip!!

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