THE ISLAND

Once you drive across the causeway and arrive at the island, you'll pass a small marina and come to a fork in the road. The left fork leads to the eastern shore of the island, Fielding Garr Ranch, and Frary Peak. If you're interested in photographing bison, this part of the island is your best bet. It's not unusual to encounter bison walking along the road and grazing in nearby fields. The Fielding Garr Ranch is also worth visiting. It's one of the oldest structures in the state of Utah. You can tour the ranch, enjoy bird watching, or go horseback riding on nearby trails.

The right fork is the route to pretty much everything else the island has to offer. Bridger Bay, the island's main day-use area , is especially popular with visitors. It has lots of parking, a picnic pavilion, and concessionaires. Bridger Bay is also a great place to enjoy a swim in the Great Salt Lake. Continue up the road, and you'll end up at Buffalo Point, which offers fantastic views of the surrounding areas in every direction. Note that it's called Buffalo Point for a reason: Bison are typically found in this area, especially in the early morning hours. While bison are hard to miss in daylight hours, they're surprisingly easy to walk up on at night. Be careful.

WILDLIFE

Antelope Island has one of the largest publicly-owned bison herds in the United States. The herd typically has between 500 and 700 bison. The bison are free to wander the island, and can be seen from almost any location. The island also has a large population of pronghorn antelope. They'll tend to keep their distance from you, but are easy to spot and photograph. Mule deer, bighorn sheep, and bobcats can also be found on the island. If you're lucky, you'll run across a coyote every now and then, especially along the island's eastern shore.

Antelope Island also has a wide variety of birds, including such interesting species as Western Meadowlarks, Horned Larks, Bald Eagles, Peregrine Falcons, Great Horned Owls, and Chukars...lots of Chukars. Chukars are especially fun to watch and photograph. They don't migrate and can be found on the island year-round. All in all, Antelope Island is home to over 250 bird species, and millions of birds nest on the island and nearby areas each year.

ACTIVITIES

When you visit Antelope Island, you have a variety of activities to choose enjoy. Hiking and mountain biking are especially popular on Antelope Island. Two trails you'll definitely want to try are Buffalo Point Trail and Dooly Knob Trail. Buffalo Point Trail is a one-mile out-and-back trail that will give you a 360-degree view of Antelope Island and the Great Salt Lake. Dooly Knob Trail is a 2.4-mile out-and-back trail that offers fantastic views of the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Range. Along the trail, you'll can easily spot bison, pronghorn antelope, and, sometimes, bighorn sheep.

Other activities you might want to look into include horseback riding, boating, fishing, swimming, and wildlife/landscape photography. For more information on activities available on Antelope Island, check out the Antelope Island State Park activities page at Utah's state park's site.

MORE INFO

• Location: 4528 West 1700 South, Syracuse, UT
• Hours: Daily, 6:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
• Contact: 801-773-2941
• Distance from us: 17.0 miles

Note that the causeway leading to Antelope Island has an electronic gate at the beginning of the causeway. The gate is up from 6:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. There's also a fee of $15/vehicle to visit the island.