23&24 March 2024 - Salt Lake City Days 3 and 4 - BISON!!!

I FINALLY found bison!

On Saturday I headed to Antelope Island State Park, a 28,000 acre island which is the largest island in Utah's Great Salt Lake. Although it's named Antelope Island, it has become famous for its bison population. Twelve bison were brought to the island in 1893, and they became the foundation for today's heard of several hundred. An annual bison roundup is held each fall to count and assess the health of the herd and sell extra animals to keep the islands ecosystem in balance. The bison are obviously thriving there!

You reach the island by going across a 5 mile causeway and can stop at the the visitor center to learn more about the islands history and trails. I first went to the western tip and walked out to the waterline – water levels are low and it was about a 1/3 mile walk from the beach to the actual waterline. The water is very salty and appears cloudy and has many tiny brine shrimp in it. From afar it has a greenish appearance, which looks pretty against the salty white shoreline.

I saw my first Buffalo within a quarter mile of the visitor center. They were a ways off the road and I was so excited and little did I know I would get up close with them just a little ways further down the road. The bison are massive! I drove down the 11 mile road on the eastern side of the island, and discovered that a handful of bison were near the road on the northern end of the island and then there was a large herd down towards the south. There are no roads down the western side of the island so my guess is that much of the population hangs out there undisturbed (shielded from humans by a small mountain in the center of the island). The island is big - about 15 miles long and 5 miles at its widest point. After not seeing any bison in Wyoming I was so happy to see some up close! It was really picturesque to have the white salt flats, the green lake water and the mountains behind the bison – and the cloud cover hung so low that the top of the mountains were obscured - beautiful!

They also had a few"art bison" similar to the cows I saw this summer in Boston – each was decorated differently.

I woke on Sunday to a snow squall which blanketed my Salt Lake City neighborhood in a light coat of snow which melted just a short while later. There were snow showers on and off all day and I picked a lull to take the dogs for a walk only to get caught in another squall halfway around our loop. The snow fell as round pellets kind of like Dippin dots ice cream - within just a few seconds both dogs looked like they had a terrible case of dandruff!

I'll be wrapping up my adventure on June 1 and need to get a new job so I spent much of today updating my résumé - perfect day to stay inside and not feel like I'm missing out on anything. I've been so lucky with amazing weather that a "stay in and get stuff done" day felt good!

I packed up my things and said goodbye to the dogs and headed out around 4 PM for a 3.5 hour drive to the southeastern part of the state where there is a cluster of several National Parks. I thought the drive would be routine only to get caught in a snow squall with white out conditions, another bout of heavy hail and sleet, and then just generally slippery/icy road conditions when temperatures dropped to 24° as I hit elevations above 7000 feet. YIKES! Being from New England I'm used to bad weather but this was some of the worst driving conditions I have seen in a long long time and not something I expected when driving through Utah in late March!

If anyone knows a company or individual who is hiring please let me know - I need to get back to work when I return to Maine in June. I'm open to a variety of work opportunities and have started exploring options and am working on updating my résumé and LinkedIn profile. I would consider any combination of remote, hybrid or in-person opportunities in the greater Portland, Maine area (or from anywhere if 200% remote). Happy to teach, problem solve and work collaboratively with others, and travel is an added bonus. My new job will be my next Adventure.

Thanks!