How the West Was Truly 'Won'

Common conversation among farmers out west hinges on the most precious of resources: water.

It's apparent in traveling across Utah that the only life-giving force in this relentless, shade-less heat is water.  Looking across the landscape you can tell where water is (or was) by the surprising sight-for-sore-eyes greenery that aligns itself along waterways. 

In fact, reading about the ghost towns of Utah, we discovered that this now desert was pastureland not 100 years ago...sheep were raised here.  But no more.  It's hard to imagine anything surviving. 

That is, until you reach a town that has secured a water source. 

Then you see an abundance of activity, from agriculture to lawns.   We took these photos in Wellington, UT, just outside of Price.   Note the irrigation wheels....that is the only think making the area green compared to the brown surrounding it. 

Traveling to the more populated areas of Provo and Salt Lake City, we saw the same pattern of development and agriculture competing for the same land (and water). 

I remember reading Cadillac Desert years ago.  Seems all the more relevant now, and a warning for the states in the east as water wars are only just beginning there.