Visiting the Great Salt Lake

Published September 22, 2009 at 11:21 am |

I’ve only been to Utah one other time in my life. It was during a family vacation. We packed the family van and visited 30 States in 30 days. I’m proud to say that I have seen much of the United States of America and can venture forth into international worlds. Yet despite my travels in my home country, there is much I haven’t seen and done. On my trip to Utah we didn’t actually go to the Great Salt Lake. We went close, but not up to the water. Last week I had the opportunity to tie up these loose ends.

Arriving early to Salt Lake City, Utah I had some time to visit the Great Salt Lake. My colleague and I found a marina off the highway to pull into and go to the lake.

IMG 0018 300x225 Visiting the Great Salt Lake

The Great Salt Lake felt otherworldly. Perhaps it was the haze of the day, or the seemingly endless sea of water, but I felt like I was on another planet. It also stunk. Literally, the place smelled of sulfur I think. While I was at the lake I had an idea.

Ordinarily, I would have tried to swim in the lake. Because of the high salinity of the water (higher than the ocean), it’s easy to float in the water. There were a few reasons I declined this swimming opportunity. 1. I didn’t pack a bathing suit. Now this isn’t a complete deterrent, but…2. I was with a colleague from work and didn’t really want to undress into my skivvies to swim in the lake. So instead we walked down the rocks, through the mud, and onto the lake shore.

IMG 0027 225x300 Visiting the Great Salt Lake

With one shoe and sock off, I put my foot in the Great Salt Lake.

It was gross. The lake is filled with thousands upon thousands of Brine Shrimp. You may remember them from your childhood days as Sea Monkeys. Yep, the Great Salt Lake is nothing but a giant tank for Sea Monkeys. The water was also very cold. There was only one person who was swimming in the lake. I shouted to him to see if it was easy to float. He said “yes”, but he also understood little English. So who knows really.

IMG 00381 300x225 Visiting the Great Salt Lake

Great Salt Lake Brine Shrimp

And the final verdict on the Great Salt Lake…

Despite the grossness of it, I was glad I did it. Many people look at the water and turn away and leave with nothing but pictures. Instead, I left with pictures AND a story. Next time you visit something, ask yourself what can you do to leave with a story and dare I say, an adventurous one at that?

For more photos about today’s adventure you can visit my Flickr site.

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