Scenic I-15 Winter Landscapes ~ St George To Nephi, Utah

Of all the places that I have traveled out west in the past, few can compare to the scenic beauty of Utah, especially during the winter season. It seems like any road that one chooses in this state, there are beautiful landscapes waiting to be experienced. This even holds true when driving on Interstate Highway 15. I-15 parallels many mountain ranges all the way from the southern border of Utah to the northern most parts of this state. As can be seen in the photos above, the snow draped mountain landscape scenery along I-15 is nothing less than majestic!

Traveling in rough winter weather conditions all day does cause severe driver fatigue. Calling it an early day shortly after sunset can be a wise choice, especially if the temperatures drop below freezing and ice becomes a hazard. During one such winter season trip, I ended up doing an overnighter in a little historic town called Nephi, along I-15. As it turned out, there was an interesting place to get a bite to eat in Nephi too.

Dining options in Nephi include a few chain restaurants and a gas station fast food joint, but I tend to favor locally owned restaurants when traveling. There simply is nothing better than fresh food that is made from scratch the old fashioned way when racking up the mileage. As far as locally owned dining options go in Nephi, the JC Mickelson’s Restaurant was the top choice, because it was basically the only choice! This place had the Christmas decorations up well into January, so it really stood out in the night. Eating something that was somewhat healthy sounded like a good idea, so I ordered the Chicken Crunch Salad. The salad was huge, just like back in the good old days of classic roadside diner restaurants, so the appetite definitely was satisfied!

The next morning, I figured that I might as well stick with a good thing and decided to have breakfast at the same restaurant before hitting the road. It was then that I found out a few details about this place. The JC Mickelson’s Restaurant has been open in Nephi since the 1960s. The building has changed and it has been remodeled a few times through the years. The same owner has always operated this restaurant in a trendsetting way that values nostalgia, while keeping up with modern times.

Nostalgia fans will be happy to know that the JC Mickelson’s Restaurant is famous for having an extensive scale model railroad that runs through the entire restaurant! There are several separate hand crafted model railroad track systems in this restaurant and each train has a theme of its own. The little trains run overhead on tracks throughout the dining room and the relaxing sound they make is kind of like listening to raindrops gently pattering on a tin roof. After a while, all that a guest feels like doing is leaning back in the chair and watching the little trains go by! 

Something that I did not notice the night before was that the JC Mickelson’s Restaurant actually has a Tesla Supercharging Station on site. Owners of Tesla electric powered cars can charge up the batteries while grabbing a good bite to eat. This old classic American diner sure has entered the modern age in a big way!

Customers spend plenty of time watching the nostalgic little model trains chug along at JC Mickelson’s Restaurant. I actually found myself ordering a couple extra cups of coffee, just so I could do the same. All that I can be said is that dining and relaxing while watching a bunch of really cool model trains is a great way to get some relief from the road!