Great Salt Lake, Salt Lake City

One of the amazing and beautiful place to visit in Utah..Like the Dead Sea, the Great Salt Lake exists within an arid environment and has chemical characteristics similar to that of the oceans. It has a much greater salinity than the oceans, however, since natural evaporation exceeds the supply of water from the rivers feeding the lake. Surrounded by great stretches of sand, salt land, and marsh, the Great Salt Lake remains eerily isolated from the nearby cities, towns, and other human habitations, though in recent years means have been found to turn its apparent sterility to a profit in both economic and recreational terms. It has become important not only as a source of minerals but also as a beach and water-sports attraction and a wildlife preserve.

Campground was great, but the lake is drying up. All the sailboats were pulled out of the water. The marina was empty in August!!

Plan on a long walk to actually get to water. Also, the hike is tough as it is lots of sand that is heavy and hot in the summer months. I would bring a float if possible. When walking in the lake it is really muddy so leave valuables on the shore if you aren’t in a swimsuit as you might trip and get wet.

2/6/23: Please, save the lake! ---- snip ---- Not a pleasant experience. Drought, odor, bugs made it a quick stop. Those walking the shore seemed challenged by the unsure footing on the salt reef.

Coming from the East Coast, I'm used to the salt water of the Atlantic Ocean. It's a cool experience to see a body of saltwater as a lake. especially in a desert area. We ended up near the edge of the lake, away from the touristy area and walked across the sand, which crinkles under your feet due to the crystallized salt. Lots of dudes paragliding on the wasteland of sand - was cool to watch them float around. Hit my goal and stuck my feet in the water - but be warned, it is full of little bug corpses and gnats out the wazoo ... also bird skeletons and feathers? It was a cool experience overall!