Antelope Island

This is a fascinating island in Salt Lake. The island is now a state park. There is a ranch, Garrett Ranch, located on the island at Garr Springs. The spring is the most consistent of the 40 springs on the island that the indigenous people and wildlife used long before Fielding Garr built his ranch. The archaeological findings have shown that there has been human activity at the springs for a least 1,000 years.

In 1848, Garr was assigned by the Mormon Church to establish a ranch on the island as a stronghold for managing the church tithing herds. The ranch was continually inhabited from then until 1981. 

The Mormon Church operated the ranch until the mid-1870's. At that time, it compassed the entire island. The church herds supported the Perpetual Emigration Fund, which assisted Mormon Church 

Members from Europe in making the trek across the Great Plains.  In 1869 the railroad came to Utah

as did federal surveys. Because the only improvements on the island were around the ranch, the government opened the rest of it to homesteading. Homesteading failed.

John Dooley Sr. Purchased the entire island for $1,000,000 and introduced bison to the island, but later sheep became the focus of the ranch. There were 10,000 sheep and the operation became one of the largest and most industrialized ranching efforts in the western United States. When it became unprofitable in the 1950's, due to a failing wool market, the ranch turned to cattle and continued as one of largest cattle operations in the state until the island became a state park in 1981.

The Salt Lake that surrounds the island is at an extremely low level. People still swim in it, as the pictures show and we waded in the water, as it is very shallow and quite smelly. The deepest part of the lake is only 33 feet. The salt content at the south end of the lake is 26% and a bit less in the north.

At the Garr Ranch

Paul found a friend. The dog walked between Paul's legs and stood there with his eyes closed enjoying the scratching.

Typical scenery. There's a small herd of bison on the salt flats in the background. You can tell how low the water is from this picture.

I found two German men floating in about 6 inches of water. They were exited to talk to, as they put it, "an authentic American tourist".

Jim and Barb got into the water also.