Antelope Island Trip

We went to Antelope Island this weekend for a two night camping trip.  Neither Mark nor I had visited the island since we were kids, so we felt it was high time we got out there with the boys.  We were a little skeptical to stay there because of all the rumors of bugs and smells, but it ended up being an experience I am so glad we have in our memories.  We got lucky with the weather and mostly lucky with the amount of bugs.

Friday afternoon we arrived and set up camp.  Oh how I love that tent trailer.  It is perfect perfect perfect for us.

 We hung out around camp for a bit.  There were tons of little white butterflies all around and Brian was trying so hard to catch them in his butterfly net.  Lucky for him, Mark stepped in to help out.  This is Mark with Brian on his heels chasing down the butterflies. 


They caught one and put it in the bug holder for awhile and then let it go.  Throughout the trip Mark caught quite a few more butterflies for the boys.  I tried several times to help catch one to no avail.  Thank goodness for spry daddy!



After setting up camp, we headed up to the Visitor Center to check things out and learn more about the island.  The whole trip I just kept thinking what a strange lake we have here.  The lake and the island are certainly unique.

That evening we took a long and beautiful bike ride.  Since my last bike post, Mark has acquired another Trail-a-Bike, so when he is with me we each can pull a child.  It is perfect.

We saw some wildlife on our ride.  We saw several bison, a deer, all kinds of birds, and this snake on the road.  Oh and plenty of bugs too, but if we just kept riding they weren't a problem.

My favorite discovery of the whole trip was when we decided to try riding our bikes on the beach and found out that it actually works!  The sand was hard enough that it allowed for the perfect sunset ride on the beach.  What more could we ask for?

 Saturday morning we woke up to a beautiful breezy day.  I am so grateful for that breeze, because it kept the heat and the bugs at bay.  

After breakfast, we headed over to Fielding Garr Ranch, initially established in 1848, and still a working ranch.  We tried our hand at a little steer roping.  

 Then we checked out the homestead and the spring.

Of course the favorite attraction was the tractors.

On our way back to camp, this is what we found.

Oh, give me a home where the Buffalo roam
Where the Deer and the Antelope play;

Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,

And the sky is not cloudy all day.

The buffalo herd was on the move and Mark anticipated where they would cross the road.  He positioned our car in the perfect spot and we ended up surrounded by the herd.

 We opened the sun roof and enjoyed the up close and personal experience from the safety of the car roof.  It was seriously cool.

After that incredible morning, we went back to camp for lunch and naps.




While we were quietly talking with Brian waiting for Timmy to finish his nap, this huge bison came lumbering through camp.  It was fun to watch him from the comfort of our beds.





Saturday afternoon, we packed up our beach stuff on the bikes and rode over to the beach and down to the water.  The water is actually quite a distance from the parking lot, and we thoroughly enjoyed reaching the water by bike rather than trudging down there hauling all our stuff on foot.


At first the boys could not stand the sting of the salty water on their bodies and we had them on our shoulders. 

Mark and I had actually never swam in the Great Salt Lake, and we wanted to experience it fully, so while Mark played with the boys in the sand, I rode all the way back to camp to get the floaty boat thing I left in the trailer.

Now they are happy to be in the water and we could really experience that weird salty water.

It is so shallow you can walk out so so far before it gets too deep.

 The floating part was the strangest of all.  Both my feet and my hands are sticking out of the water and I'm just sitting there on top of the water.

Then Brian decided to experience it and thought it was pretty cool too.

Timmy stayed in the boat and wanted to just float around forever.

 Finally we went back to camp and rinsed off as best we could.  Here is where the pictures stop, because the attack of the bugs began.  We ate dinner in the tent trailer and stayed inside for the rest of the night.  Swarms of itty bitty biting gnats were out in force.  We thought we would see how it was in the morning and maybe take another bike ride.  We woke up Sunday morning to even more than the night before, so we decided to join the other campers who were abandoning camp.  We packed up that place as fast as we ever will and drove out!  It made me so grateful for the beautiful time we had on Friday and Saturday!  It all ended up working in our favor and we had quite the experience!  I am glad we got to experience such fun family time as well as Utah's unique geography.