The Great Salt Lake

Having come to Salt Lake City, we of course had to go visit the Great Salt Lake. The Great Salt Lake is apparently two to five times saltier than the ocean! This also means that one can float in the lake, quite effortlessly.

We decided to visit Antelope Island, an island in the lake offering great views of the lake, a beach, and some fauna (bison, mainly) to watch. After a couple of diversions (as luck would have it, there was a parade and a part of the way was closed off), we reached the lake around mid-morning. It would be no exaggeration to call the lake and surrounding areas, breathtaking. At many places, the surrounding hills were reflected off the surface of the water, giving the whole place a very surreal appearance.

We also managed to see a bison from very close range. I think the bison there are used to people driving by and taking pictures. Having obliged a few cars on the road with some winning poses, he(?) turned back to his own business.

There's actually quite a long beach to the lake. It's a walk from the edge, and I wonder if that's because a lot of water from the lake has evaporated. Just as we neared the lake, we were attacked by a stench. We had to bear it and try to ignore carcasses of some small birds, mostly ducks. The next deterrent was gnats. Droves and droves of gnats that settled everywhere on the lake, on the sand, on us.

If you get past all that and get into the water, it's warm, pleasant, mostly still, and yes, you do float in the water! At least my foot did. :)

More on Salt Lake City in the next :)