Salt Lake City -1

The screaming descent off I-80 into Salt Lake City, Utah, was harrowing for Debbie who was at the wheel of our 29,410 pound GAWR motor coach.  We're still alive, down from a high of 8,000' MSL.  At this point, though, John is sick.  Apparently Debbie infected him somewhere in Missouri, then she got well.  John continued hacking from his lungs and feeling generally miserable until well into SE Utah, but we'll get there eventually.

For now we're in the town that LDS founder Brigham Young created as a Mormon Mecca.

And you should know that we are much more creative persons than to illustrate the place with a picture of the many-spired Temple...or even a bee hive. 

SLC, aside from the roughly 75x30 mile lake with too much salt, has a nature preserve called Antelope Island.  The lake is 4,200' above sea level and exists because rivers run into it but none runs out, leaving mineral-heavy water concentrating there.   We learned the salinity is not enough to keep all life out of the area.  No fish, but bugs abound.  So do plants and the bigger critters that feed on them.

Actually our friendly bison, there, is an invasive species himself.  The National Park  Service does not say that, of course, (any more than Johnny Appleseed is condemned as an environmental criminal for spreading all that edible non-native flora), but does say the buffalo were brought there when the government realized they were going extinct.  The NPS is proud of the several-thousand current population.  It's "Antelope Island", however, because the original white men who named it thought that's what the Pronghorn Deer were. --but those guys couldn't jump either.

Anyway, John carried on the traditional Family Bry vacation tradition of doing our tours on ugly weather days, because John's Mom loved the beach except when it rained.  It was cold this day, too.

Going back to the coach, Debbie got her highlight, however.  We had discovered Amazon Locker, and tested it by ordering some mobile household gadget or another to be delivered during our stay in this city.  She punched in the emailed code, the yellow door swung open, and there was the familiar brown cardboard box!  This caused serious joy for her.  Seriously. 

The weather looks better for tomorrow, so we'll stay in the area a while.