OCR Text |
Show 2E Thursday, June 3, 1993 Standard-Examiner ea uvuvinoe Sean Antelope Island rises from slumber After dormant decade,it reopens July 1 water. said the parks division will announce its plans to accept slip rent- Wasatch Front. The park was officially closed to the public June 21, 1983. For those 10 years, Mitch Larsson, Antelope Island State Park su- perintendent, has been waiting for the day the island would re-open and people can once again experi- ence one of the wonders of the world — the Great Salt Lake. “People come fromall over the “Then they get here, and theycan’t get to it.” als shortly. Although the Great Salt Lake is In less than a month, they'll be appreciated, even loved, by sailboat owners, it’s never been very popu- able to get to it. The causewayis nearly restored, with only one sec- tion left to be rebuilt. That part of causeway, over a bridge that allows lake water to pass through freely, is tantalizingly close to the island. The state parks division fields dozens of queries each week won- dering when theisland will open, Larsson said. Park rangers spent an inordinate amount of time chasing curious visitors off the island until Davis County hired a full-time employee whose job is to turn people around when they reach the construction site on the causeway. He’s a busy man. That there is work enough to employ a gatekeeper is testimony to the appeal of Antelope Island. But what's out there, you ask? It's pretty basic stuff, actually. Biking, swimming, camping. Some hiking, a marina for boats, a road that provides scenic views. From a distanceit’s a stark, barren looking place, especially in summer when the green grasses have turned to brown. But Antelope Island has a quiet dignity, a subtle beauty. The roads that wind around the northern end of the island are popular with bicyclists and runners, as well as recreational drivers. A new campground will be built on the northwest shore of the island at Bridger Bay, Larsson said. The campground will include 40 units, with water and probably electricity, and is due to open by the spring of 1994. The old primitive campground, also located on Bridger Bay but slightly to the south, will be refur- lar with motorized boaters, who fear the salt water will destroy their craft. Larsson said motorboat owners are missing out on someofthe best boating anywhere when they avoid the Great Salt Lake. Salt water can damage motors and cause corrosion, he said, but only if the equipment isn’t rinsed off promptly and thoroughly. “Onething I'd like to dispel is the idea that you can’t take conventional boats out on the Great Salt Lake,” he said. “Just make sure to rinse the boats off real well after you get them off the lake.” Boat surfaces should be rinsed immediately, and motor intakes should be fitted with rinsing collars and rinsed for at least five minutes, he said. Boating is a tricky business on the Great Salt Lake, but mainly be- cause sudden storms can quickly create dangerous conditions. The lake surface can go from flat to choppy in minutes, and waves cresting at five feet or more can appear in a few minutes more. Larsson said the main bays will offer good boating for canoes and kayaks, and that tours around the entire shoreline will be possible. He said the open water of the main lake is too treacherous for small boats. Further south, Whiterock Bay will be open this year to group camping. It’s a vast, crescent shaped flat, sloping toward the lake. Water won’t be available, but restroomswill be built. “It was the most popular group Wildlife belies Antelope Island’s barren image ANNE RAUP/Standard-Examiner Antelope Island State Park is due to open to the public July 1, and it promises to provide recreation of all sorts — from bicycling area on the island,” Larsson said. — fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, scout troops, you name 1 But as popular as Whiterock Bay was, as heavily visited as the Bridger Bay beaches were, Antelope Island has neverreached its potential as a state park. “The real meat is when we're going to be able to get them out on the east shore,” Larsson said. It’s not widely known, but most of Antelope Island won’t open to the public on July 1. A chain link fence slices across the island from east to west, denying the public access to more than two-thirds of the 28,000 acre state park. That will likely remain the case for at least two more years. But the future of the state park will center around that part of the island. The island’s east side is where the bulk of the park’s wildlife is centered. It’s also the site of a pioneer ranch, and where most of the planned hiking/bikingtrail construction will take place. Larsson said the historic buildings that comprise the old pioneer homestead on the island’s southeast side could eventually become one of the main attractions on the island. The old ranchsite contains a home, spring house, bunkhouse, stables and a barn once used for shearing sheep, more recently used for barn dances. An old tack building collapsed under the weight of “Things take time,” Larsson said. “When you don’t have the funds, that time takes longer.” A few weeks after that, I toured part of the island with a group of bicyclists. Over the course of about six hours, rarely did more than a few minutes pass without some kind of wildlife coming into view. Minutes after starting out, a lone antelope buck spun around after spotting us, seemingly unsure whether to run or stand still. It compromised by walking away. A flotilla of ducks bobbed in the surf, suddenly scattering when a coyote loped by on the shore. A couple of miles later, we surprised four elk grazing quietly in a tight little group. It took only a mo- ment for them to notice us, and they ran off, kicking up clouds of dust and clods of earth. Off in the distance, mere specks against the stark, almost treeless hills, two groups of bison grazed over the spring-green grass. Several pairs of shorebirds, knownaswillets, darted and whis- tled as they performed acrobatics above a small pond recently gouged into the earth. A pair of geese complained noisily at the invasion of their privacy. This was, perhaps, an exceptional day, but it appears obvious that Only $349 Antelope Island has the potential to achieve a reputation as a vast, open air zoo. The grassy, treeless terrain bears a superficial resemblance to the savannah of east Africa — you half expect to see lions, giraffe and baboons instead of elk, bison and antelope. Wildlife transplants coordinated by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources brought antelope and elk to the island earlier this year, and the animals are beginning to adapt to life on the 28,000 acre state park. The elk and antelope share space with the island’s most famousresidents, the herd of bison that now numbers about 400 animals. “If we put it together properly, this park will be here for genera‘tions,” Larsson said. “This will be a place for all the little kids to learn about wildlife.” We havejust bought out Toole Suzuki and are now Overstocked on 6/30/83 ister Now for Dutch Oven Cooking Classes 4th @ July 8th @ Se pt. 30th Class size Limited Suzuki inventory. Comein now for the best buy of the Season. \\Ai! \\ AX\\ . But the wildlife on the island doesn’t seem to notice. Numerous species of wildlife, from bunny to bison, roam theisland, Since domestic cattle grazing was stopped in 1984, native grasses have begun to recover, and the wild creatures have flourished on the more abundant feed. Partly because of the improved forage conditions, a glaring oversight was corrected last January when the island’s namesake — pronghorn antelope — were returned to Antelope Island. A few weeks later, two trailers full of Rocky Mountain elk joined the pronghorns. Off Wrench % i springs, maybe that’s an accurate description. \\\ LIQUIDATION SALE “Your Outdoor and Limergency Store" o Antelope Island has been described as a barren, inhospitable place. With miles ofrolling, treeless hills, occasional clouds of insects and a mere handful of fresh water One of the few lush places on the island is located at the site of an old pioneer ranch, where a picnic area will be placed. WUaatLes Natural Gee Although muchofthe best wildlife habitat on the island won’t be opened to the public for at least a year and a half, Larsson said visitors will be able to observe bison calves from close range at the park’s corral area. Afterall the island’s bison are rounded upin late October, the calves are penned and fed for more than five months, from Nov. | to early April. “If they come backto visit sever- al times, people can watch these calves really grow over the winter,” Larsson said. “They put on two pounds a day, so they'll go from 200 pounds to 500 pounds when we release them.” The bison alone will attract thousands of visitors, but the overall richness of the island’s population may be more impressive. With the eventual re-introduction of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, the island’s list of native species would be complete. A proposa! to bring bighorns ontotheisland has been approved by the Utah Wildlife Board, Other sites in Utah rank ahead of Antelope Island, and sources of bighorn sheep in the In- $10 golf with $29 mid-week room. CONFIDENCE. Rider comfort, passing power and exquisite road manners are standard equipmenton the Suzuki GSX11006G. State Line/Silver Smith WEN DOVER » N £€EV AD A i @ 1127cc DOHC,4-cylinder, Suzuki TSCC® 4-valve-per-cylinder SACS” cooled engine. @ Gear-driven balancer shaft reducesvibration. @ Roomy and natural positioning of bars, seat and pegs. 4 LLL At Suzuki we wantevery ride to be safe and enjoyable. So always wear a helmet, eye protection and protective clothing Neverride under the influence of alcohol or other drugs. Study your owner's manual and always inspect your Suzuki before riding. Take a riding skills course, For the course nearest you call the Motorcycle Satuty Foundation at 1-800447-4700, Professionalrider pictured BIG BOYS TOYS 2529 NO. HWY89, Ogden, UT 782-6125 $ SUZUKI. The ride you've been waiting for.” Seg termountain West are scarce. a a él 4 i: Wy WK WS X ANN \ Standard-Examinerstaft unopen, will eventually become the focus of the park’s activities. winter snows a couple ofyears ago, and park officials are hoping to have it restored. “We're looking at getting funds to refurbish the ranch house, and to see if we can’t get the beauty of that side of the island preserved,” Larsson said. A big, grassy yard amongst a grove of cottonwood trees provides a good picnic area. A rustic wooden corral faces the east shoreline, offering a panoramic view of the Wasatch Front. On a good day you can see the Wellsville Mountains to the north, Timpanogos to the south. The ranch is almost 11 miles from the fence at the north end of the island. A dirt road now follows the shoreline to the ranch. By 1995, the east shore road is expected to be paved, which will open the bulk of the island to the public. Larsson said the parks division will work with hiking and biking groups to develop the trail system on the south island. Whattrails now existare little more than game trails. “If the public offers its services, we’ll develop a spectaculartrail system that goes through the best geology, the best archaeology and the best wildlife areas, but avoids the animals in their sensitive times,” Larsson said. “We had camp-outs of every sort Bison, elk, namesake species making comeback By JIM WRIGHT to picnicking on the beaches. Theisland’s southern part, as yet \\ the causeway that connects it with the east shore communities on the A the Great Salt Lake poured over )AN same way we're taught about places in Europe, like the Alps,” he said. to open July 1, almost 10 years to the day since the flood waters of LY world to see the Great Salt Lake because they're taught about it, the Bridger Bay is where most of the beach area is located. The white sand beaches extend high up the slope, in some places several hundred feet. “One benefit of the flooding is that it increased the size of the Bridger Bay beach three times,” Larsson said. “The flood water pulled a lot of sand down off the sandhills and onto the beach.” Public restrooms and showers at Bridger Bay are being refurbished, and will be open in time for the park opening, Larsson said. A small concession stand offering a limited menu of food and refreshments will be open. The marina, located just north of the causeway on Buffalo Bay, will rent 120 new boat slips, 96 for boats up to 25 feet, 24 for boats in the 30- to 35-foot range. Larsson Ni SYRACUSE Somehow it seems fitting that Antelope Island will reopen to the public in the wettest year since the one that closedit 10 years ago Antelope Island State Park is due bished this year and opened as a tent camping area, without drinking NS standard-t xarmner staff \ By JIM WRIGHT , ‘ ‘ |