Saltiness

To those that always ask me, "Can't you go to the Great Salt Lake to go swimming and hang out at the beaches there?" I always answer, "GROSS!!! Why would you ever?!" For those of you who have spent time anywhere near the Great Salt Lake understand my point - the stank, the brine shrimp flies, the seagulls...it's not relaxing day at the beach!

Antelope Island

You can see the flies around, in a cloud of black, around the seagull.

Unfortunately, Lonely Planet did not get the same memo. I was just reading an article about the world's saltiest sites for seasoned travelers. This is what I found:

6. Great Salt Lake, Utah, USA

Size does matter. The Great Salt Lake, located in northern Utah, lays claim to being the largest salt lake in the western hemisphere, no mean feat. The lake used to be part of prehistoric Lake Bonneville, and is also known as America’s Dead Sea. It’s home to millions of creatures able to survive the high saline levels, such as waterfowl and other birds, including the largest staging population of Wilson’s phalarope in the world – a boon for birdwatchers.

If you’re looking to get lost for a while, why not take a salty cruise to one of the lake’s 11 recognised tidal islands. Antelope Island has superb beaches that off er great swimming opportunities. Take Interstate 15, heading north from Salt Lake City.

I like to listen to Lonely Planet, when Lonely Planet speaks. However, you will NOT find me hanging out at the "superb" beaches of Antelope Island any day too soon! You may find me riding a bike there, but that is a different story!

Now if I were going to go to one of the saltiest sites in the world, I would definitely be hitting up Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni - the world's largest salt flats and is known as the world's largest mirror, when covered in water.