I am on holidays, and all I do is taking family pictures of no public interest. Yet, there is a place I really want to tell you about, so that if you travel through the area, you spare some couple of hours to visit, or even camp there over night. Antelope Island, Utah, a home to the Antelope Island State Park.
Great Salt Lake’s largest island looks like another world.
It is my third visit, and I have a couple of photographs to share.
In the image below you can see a 7-mile causeway to Antelope Island the way it looks from the top of the Buffalo Point. The causeway was submerged for most of the 1980’s, because of high lake levels.
The island hosts countless nesting and migratory birds of about 250 species, including various species of waterfowl and birds of prey.
More than forty freshwater springs produce 36 million gallons of water each year supporting wildlife and vegetation. Pronghorn antelopes are native to Utah, and there is a big herd of them on the island.
Bison, or American buffaloes, are the most famous residents. There are about 600 animals in different parts of the island.
I have also seen hawks, lizards, mull deer, coyotes, and a porcupine in the tree.
The picture of the porcupine is not great, but I think I was very lucky to take it.
Another attraction is the historical Fielding Garr Ranch, and I advise you to visit it. A tip: it closes early, so you better go there first thing in the morning.
I could not resist to take a picture of this old Dodge pick up truck.
Here is an awesome map of the Antelope Island I borrowed from Wikimedia.
The most spectacular is the road that runs along the eastern coast. I have never been there in summer, but even in the winter haze it looks like a different planet.
Buffalo Point hike is very steep and rough, but it offers you some truly breathtaking views over the White Rock Bay.
This time we didn’t do any hiking. We were looking for buffaloes.
There were many of them, all far away from the road. It is very difficult to explain to a toddler that a black dot barely visible in the tall dry grass is a promised huge buffalo. ” I wanna see a Gruffalo!”
But it was our lucky day indeed – we met one at the side of the road.
After that we went off to the shore.
Great Salt Lake is a remnant of prehistoric Lake Bonneville which covered more than 20 000 square miles during the Ice Age.
Water flows into the lake from four rivers, but Great Salt Lake has no outlet: water leaves only through evaporation. Concentration of minerals is very high and no fish or any other creature can live in this water except for brine shrimp and brine flies, and some algae.
Oolitic sand is a unique feature of Great Salt Lake. Round grains of sand are formed similar to how pearls are formed, with the pellets of brine shrimp faces in the middle.
A 15 minute walk to the shore in some 100F was a mistake: the lake smells 😦 The sand was crawling with the tiny flies, and I suspect, their larvae… Probably it is a seasonal thing.
Nevertheless, it is a place I highly recommend to visit, especially during the Annual events like Moonlight Bike Ride, and celestial events – for night photography. I am in love with the island and hope to come here again in Spring.
Thank you for taking this short tour with me! 🙂
Have a great weekend!
Making memories 
This is such an amazing post…. The animals living freely in their natural surroundings. And yet one can look at them!. An unique experience, indeed!. Thanks so much for sharing with us, dear Inese!. Hugs and best wishes. Aquileana 😀
Thank you dear friend! Yes, the animals are free, and thankfully have enough fresh water in spite of being surrounded with the lifeless lake. I hope more people learn about this unique place and visit.
Hugs!!!
I hope so too… Hugs right back at you! 🌟★🚗! Aquileana
I had never heard of this place but then Utah is not that close to where I live. Driven through the state a few times. Wish I had spent more time looking around. Beautiful images!
Thank you so much! This park is not famous indeed, but worth to visit. Only $10 per car ( 8 people), and minutes from I-15 and I-80.
wonderful wonderful pictures 🙂
Thank you Montserrat!
Beautiful photography Inese. Well written and educative too. Thank you.
Thank you Dilip!
Nice work Inese!
Thank you Pat!
Another really well described and illustrated tour
Thank you Derrick! 🙂
Lovely photos! I had no idea porcupines climbed trees. Well spotted!
Thank you! I had no idea too! We were not able to come closer, but my son-in-law recognized him on spot. Amazing!
So very beautiful! Thank you for sharing these wonderful photographs! I want to go there.
Thank you so much! It is close to the airport, Salt Lake City, and Bonneville Salt Flats; some 6-7 hours drive from Moab, and 10-12 hours drive from the Grand Canyon.
Thanks!
Great post! It’s unusual to read on WP about Lake Bonneville, not many people understand that kind of history. 🙂
Thank you! 🙂 Hopefully I will visit the island next spring and make a bigger post covering some geology, and also the historic ranch.
Oh, save the flies I say it was a magnificent place; there is something in that old Dodge that looks like a noble bison too. Thanks for show it to us, Inese ^_^
Thank you Francis! I should have posted more pictures of the wildlife and the ranch, but I am on holidays with my grandchildren and will leave it for another post next spring 🙂
Happy holidays 🙂 Always is going to be time for another post and that would be another reason to visit you so that’s good 😉
Thank you! 🙂
Thanks for sharing a part of this world. You captured me into the photographs as though I was there. Thanks you
Thank you for reading! This park is not too famous worldwide, but still has half a million visitors a year 🙂
Wow that is still numerous in people visitors. Hopefully that does not have a detrimental effect on flora and fauna
I hope not. No dogs allowed, no hiking beyond trails. The island is 15 miles long, there is room for anyone. People seem to be respectful. The wildlife is well controlled too. You would be surprised seeing so many species just in a matter of 2-3 hours.
Good to hear
This is beautiful Inese, breath-taking photos 🙂
Thank you Andrea! Took them over the years.
Lots of great photos here. Well done.
Thank you Frank! Most of the pictures are taken years ago. I would love to see the island in spring.
Great images….I’d love to visit this area, especially after seeing your photos. Cheers =)
Thank you! The island is near the airport 😉
Very cool trip! I didn’t know the park existed. I’m glad there’s a refuge for the buffalo. Nice post.
Thank you Cindy! One of the links I shared really surprised me. There is a list of all the Utah wild preserves and parks, and I have never heard of most of them. This area has so many famous parks that it is easy to miss an island 🙂
Hi Inese — and happy weekend! What a beautiful and unexpected post. I enjoyed it very much. Mega hugs!
Thank you Teagan! We did some traveling 🙂
The best I’ve seen, I love the Grufflo.
Thank you so much! He was so close we could smell him.
This is a great tour to the place. I have not heard of the place before. Now this place will on my consideration to visit. The scenery are beautiful.
Thank you so much! This area is so rich with stunning and famous National Parks that many people somehow miss this one.
Excellent, Inese, excellent
Thank you for sharing
with love
john
Thank you so much for stopping by, John! Glad you are back. I have already read your new poems a couple of weeks ago, but didn’t have time to comment as I was getting ready to my trip.
Peace and love from Ireland!
Beautiful, the pictures reminds me of some wild west movie. The magnitude of the prairies, if you can call them that. Sorry about the stinking lake, you have to suffer to take good pictures! That´s your job.
Thank you friend! You are right, the magnitude of the space is overwhelming. And as to the stinking lake – some people were actually sitting in the water the whole time. It is probably good for your health 🙂
Who knows, maybe is true what you say. Don´t people put on mud on them? They say it´s good for the skin so….go figure
Yeah, but we would do it only to save our life 🙂