Luckily, on our last day in Utah, I got out of training early, and Nisheet and I were able to have a full afternoon of adventures together. Topping our to-do list was Antelope Island State Park. I really wanted to see the Salt Lake. I mean, who goes to Salt Lake City and doesn’t see the lake it is named after? And, Antelope Island is one of the best places to view the lake. 

So, after my training ended, I rushed back to the hotel and picked up Nisheet. We headed to Antelope Island which is only a 45 minute drive away, but we only made it about 15 minutes before making our first stop… In-N-Out burger. For those that have ever been out west, you how they are arguably the best fast food burger chain both in terms of flavor and quality. When we realized that there were a couple of In-N-Out in Salt Lake City, we just had to stop and stuff our bellies full of greasy goodness.

We then continued onwards to Antelope Island via a mix of highway and street driving. We finally reached the guards gate and noticed a peculiar sign that said “the gnats (No-See-Ums) have hatched.  Head-nets or at least a hat are the best defense against them.” Whoa! It must be important if they chose to inform the visitors right at the entrance gate! Luckily, we learned from the guard that the head nets were sold at the visitors center so that’s where we headed to next. During the drive, we noticed that all of a sudden our front windshield started hitting something that sounded like rain drops. We soon realized that it wasn’t rain drops but something that looked the size of a mosquito. Within a span of 15 seconds, our whole windshield was completely covered with these things and we had to turn on our windshield wipers to get rid of these buggers.

We soon reached the visitors center and practically ran inside as the insects were everywhere. We soon learned at the visitor’s center that the insect that we have been coming across were called Midges which are non-biting flies that form columns along the causeway mid-spring through early fall. These are what cover your windshield while driving to and from the island. We were relieved to learn that they don’t bite.

The displays at the center were very informational and talked about the unique geography and wildlife that Antelope Island contains. We learned that Antelope Island is the largest island on Salt Lake covering 28,000 acres. Also, the salinity of the lake can be as high as 27% which is much higher than the 3.5% that our oceans have. You would think that with that level of salinity, no life can exist which is only partially true. While there are no fish in the lake, the brine shrimp thrive in the waters. It is because of these brine shrimps that Salt Lake is a huge stopover for migratory birds. We then stopped at the gift shop and promptly bought two head nets and some souvenirs to take back home.

About a mile from the visitors center, we came across Bridger Bay which is considered the best “beach” on Antelope Island. I say “beach” because even though it’s a open area next to water, it doesn’t really have sand but instead has rocky pebbles. Regardless though, the area was very serene and peaceful. There were huge tall mountain ranges in distance, and the salty water felt therapeutic.

One of the best hikes that one of the ranger’s recommended was the Buffalo Point. It was about a 2 mile drive from Bridger Bay to the Buffalo Point trailhead. After parking our car and dawning our headnets, we started the gradual climb to the top of Buffalo Point. Right away as we climbed, there was a barrage of the non-biting Midges that came flying towards us. I can’t even imagine how annoying it must be for folks that don’t have the headnets to deal with these things trying to climb inside your nostrils and ear canal. Along the way, we kept coming across folks commending us for the headnets and saying how wise we were. The view from the top was mesmerizing. We were surrounded by pristine waters of the lake and vast mountain ranges. We even saw the downtown Salt Lake City and marveled at how little it looked.

After the hike, it was time to discover the east side of the island. So, we got on the Antelope Island Rd. and started driving. Out of nowhere, we suddenly saw a vast flat land covered with almost 200 Bisons. It was a majestic sight often seen in Western movies. Herds of big beasts gently grazing and moving in the same direction while snow capped mountains laid in the back. We parked our car by the side of the road and watched the little baby bisons trotting alongside their 2000 lb mothers. It was a serene and magical sight.

After watching the Bison, we started moving again and reached the end of paved road at the Fielding Garr ranch. The Fielding Garr Ranch House was the oldest continually inhabited home in the state of Utah (from 1848 to 1981). The house is so solidly built that it is still on its original foundation. Along the house is an old barn containing farming equipment, replica of a covered wagon and wooden horses.

After spending some time exploring the ranch, it was time to head back to the city. As we drove back by the herd of Bisons, we noticed somebody at us. Thinking that they needed help, we stopped and then saw the guy running towards us. After we rolled down our windows, he pointed and excitedly said to us “there are a couple of coyotes chasing a baby and mother bison!” Sure enough, there were two sneaky looking coyotes running in the bushes parallel to the mother bison and baby. It was like watching Animal Planet in real life! We watched and waited for some action to happen but then eventually lost sight of the coyotes. We both said to each other how lucky we were that we got to see nature in action and how it was a perfect ending to our day at Antelope Island.