Bonneville Salt Flats Brochure

2/11 100M 2/11

www.co.tooele.ut.us

to the Tooele County website: County Tooele the to

For additional information please refer please information additional For

www.blm.gov/ut

Bureau of Land Management website: Management Land of Bureau

For additional information please refer to the the to refer please information additional For

curvature of the earth is purportedly visible to the naked eye. naked the to visible purportedly is earth the of curvature

Salt Flats are one of seven locations around the world where the the where world the around locations seven of one are Flats Salt

a o e h uvtr fteearth? the of curvature the see you Can The Bonneville Bonneville The

the Bureau of Land Management Salt Lake Field Offce. Field Lake Salt Management Land of Bureau the

commercial flming permits are required and may be obtained from from obtained be may and required are permits flming commercial

should not be driven upon when they are submerged in water. in submerged are they when upon driven be not should

salt except during special events. Organized group permits and and permits group Organized events. special during except salt

is corrosive and should be washed off of vehicles. The Salt Flats Flats Salt The vehicles. of off washed be should and corrosive is

required to take personal photos, view the area, or drive on the the on drive or area, the view photos, personal take to required

the Salt Flats is hazardous and has resulted in fatalities. Salt residue residue Salt fatalities. in resulted has and hazardous is Flats Salt the

permit? a need I do When A permit or entrance fee is not not is fee entrance or permit A

may become suddenly stuck in underlying mud. Getting stuck on on stuck Getting mud. underlying in stuck suddenly become may

cycles and ATVs are permitted on the Salt Flats. Salt the on permitted are ATVs and cycles

However, avoid driving along the edge of the salt crust as your vehicle your as crust salt the of edge the along driving avoid However,

areas. Reservations for spectators are not required. Bicycles, motor- Bicycles, required. not are spectators for Reservations areas.

the Salt Flats are dry, the surface is generally safe to drive upon. drive to safe generally is surface the dry, are Flats Salt the

entrance fee and following route markers to designated viewing viewing designated to markers route following and fee entrance

Flats Travel Advisory, which is available at www.blm.gov/ut. When When www.blm.gov/ut. at available is which Advisory, Travel Flats

nteSl Flats? Salt the on The public can gain access by paying an an paying by access gain can public The

when you plan to return. Review and adhere to the Bonneville Salt Salt Bonneville the to adhere and Review return. to plan you when

What do I need to know about attending events events attending about know to need I do What Flats you are on your own. Let someone know where you are and and are you where know someone Let own. your on are you Flats

si aet rv nteSl Flats? Salt the on drive to safe it Is If you drive on the Salt Salt the on drive you If fats next to the Salt Flats access road. access Flats Salt the to next fats

adjacent public lands. During events participants camp on the mud mud the on camp participants events During lands. public adjacent mandatory to maintain public safety. public maintain to mandatory

developed campground facilities. Free camping is available on on available is camping Free facilities. campground developed fees may be required and special security restrictions may be be may restrictions security special and required be may fees

health and safety, and to protect natural resources. There are no no are There resources. natural protect to and safety, and health

and open to the public most of the year. During permitted events events permitted During year. the of most public the to open and

and freworks are prohibited on the Salt Flats to maintain public public maintain to Flats Salt the on prohibited are freworks and driver’s license or learner’s permit. The Salt Flats are free to visit visit to free are Flats Salt The permit. learner’s or license driver’s

available? camping overnight Is Overnight camping, fres fres camping, Overnight operate an off-road vehicle on public lands without a valid State State valid a without lands public on vehicle off-road an operate

Flats? Salt the on drive anyone Can No person may may person No town of Wendover. of town

lodging and other services are available at Exit 4 or in the nearby nearby the in or 4 Exit at available are services other and lodging own risk and is only recommended when the surface is entirely dry. entirely is surface the when recommended only is and risk own

on the Salt Flats after the paved access road ends. Food, fuel, Food, ends. road access paved the after Flats Salt the on

de-sac is at the end of the road. Travel on the Salt Flats is at your your at is Flats Salt the on Travel road. the of end the at is de-sac

able on the Salt Flats. There are no surface improvements or signs signs or improvements surface no are There Flats. Salt the on able

paved road turns right and heads due east for three miles. A cul- A miles. three for east due heads and right turns road paved

oeeCut,Utah County, Tooele

available? are facilities What There are no facilities avail- facilities no are There From there drive north toward the Silver Island Mountains. The The Mountains. Island Silver the toward north drive there From

road leading to the Salt Flats is reached by taking Exit 4 off I-80. off 4 Exit taking by reached is Flats Salt the to leading road

dangers in the summer. the in dangers atFlats Salt

80 before the state border at Wendover, Utah. The paved access access paved The Utah. Wendover, at border state the before 80

clothing and plenty of water. Dehydration and heat exhaustion are are exhaustion heat and Dehydration water. of plenty and clothing

located 120 miles west of Salt Lake City, Utah just off of Interstate Interstate of off just Utah City, Lake Salt of west miles 120 located hot summer days. Visitors need to come prepared with protective protective with prepared come to need Visitors days. summer hot

Flats? Salt Bonneville the are Where The Salt Flats are are Flats Salt The during warm weather months. UV radiation can be intense on on intense be can radiation UV months. weather warm during

Bonneville Bonneville occur often thunderstorms and winds Strong summer. in digits

temperatures can range from below freezing in winter to triple triple to winter in freezing below from range can temperatures rqetyakdquestions asked Frequently

Flats? Salt the on like weather the is What Daytime Daytime BLM

ehT Bonneville Salt Flats are one of Earth’s most unique land- near the center and only an inch or two at the outer edges. The Salt . forms. Located 120 miles west of LakSalt e City Tin Countyooele , Utah, Flats are just over 46 square miles in size (30,000 acres), which the Salt Flats are about fve miles wide and 12 miles long. They are equates to about 147 million tons, or 99 million cubic y ,ards of salt. comprised mostly of sodium chloride or table salt., Like the Great Salt ,eLak the Salt Flats are a remnant of ancient Ice Age Lake Bonneville, rehW e id d ht e man e moc e ?morf In 1833, explorer Joseph which covered over one-third of Utah from about 32,000 to 10,000 R. alkW er mapped around the Great Salt Lak .e He also crossed the . years ago. The Salt northern perimeter of the Salt Flats while working for Capt. Benjamin Flats are managed by L.E. Bonneville. At that time it was common for people to name t ahW t ra e ht e the Bureau of Land signifcant landmarks after their employers. It is from Capt. Bonneville Management. heyT that the Salt Flats and Lake Bonneville derive their name. There is no are on the National known historical record of Bonneville himself ever seeing the Salt Flats ellivennoB Register of Historic or Great Salt Lake. ,Places and are desig- t laS t ?stalF as an “nated Area of lraE y amuh n yrotsih Researchers have determined that primitive Critical Environmental humans lived there more than 10,000 years ago at nearby Danger Concern” because of their geology, history and scenic beauty. A place Cave. Where did these people come from? How did they live? What to preserve and protect, the Bonneville Salt Flats attract thousands of reliable food sources were in the area to sustain them? Although Lake visitors each year. Bonneville was receding at the time, did it provide them with fresh ahW t neppah s on ht e laS t talF s yadot ? Automotive water and food? These questions have only been partially answered endurance and land rspeed acing are perhaps responsible for the Salt w oH w id d ht e llivennoB e laS t talF s mrof ? When Lake by archaeologists. Digging or disturbing historical sites is illegal. The Flats’ global renown. The Salt Flats were mostly a local fascination Bonneville was at its highest level approximately 17,000 years ago, Archaeological Resources Protection Act provides penalties up to Twhen Teddy etzlaff drove a Blitzen Benz to an unoffcial speed of the water exceeded 1,000 feet deep over the Bonneville Salt Flats. $250,000 and fve years imprisonment for violators. 141.73 mph in 1914. Since then land-speed racing on the Salt Flats Evidence of this great depth has grown enormously. Every summer and early fall, professional is seen as horizontal terraces neceR t amuh n rotsih y and amateur teams from around the world compete for land-speed and escarpments on the HADI O rT apper and frontiersman records in different vehicle classes. Events such as August’s “Speed sides of the nearby Silver Jedediah Smith crossed the Salt September’”eek,W “Ws orld of Speed” and October’ Finals“Ws ,orld ” Island Mountains. As Lake Logan NIMOYW G Flats while returning to Utah transform the Salt Flats into a magnet for land-speed drivers and Bonneville receded, ev -aapor from an expedition to California spectators. The fastest recorded speed on the Salt Flats is 622.407 tion left large concentr -a in 1827. John C F. remont and mph, set by Gary Gabolich in 1970 in his “Blue Flame” rocket car . The tions of dissolved minerals Ogden U ..Shis government-sponsored Salt Flats also host a variety of other events every year. The Salt Flats deposited in surrounding expedition crossed the heart of are also internationally renowned as a unique backdrop for flming . soils. hese minerT als include endoverW Salt Lake City the Salt Flats in 1845 while trying major motion pictures, fashion layouts, and automobile commercials. potash, which is commer- Bonneville Tooele to fnd a shorter overland cially used as fertilizer, and Salt Flats Provo O route to the Pacifc Ocean. halite (table salt). The Salt D The next year Fremont’s

Flats are comprised of ap- A route across the Salt Flats proximately 90% salt. odayT , R would become known as shallow groundwater fows ATU H O the Hastings Cutoff as L in from the surrounding w -a ADAV part of the California rT ail. tershed, picks up dissolved O Promoted by Lansford minerals along the w ,ay and C Hastings as a faster, easier percolates upward to the Milford route to California, Hastings Salt Flats’ surface. During EN Cutoff proved to be just the cooler months (November Ancient Lake Bonneville opposite for the Donner- to May), this groundwa- Reed Party of 1846. What ter foods the Salt Flats Today’s Great Salt Lake contributed to the party’s several inches deep. When infamous winter survival in temperatures rise in late Relative distances and locations on this map are approximate and are not to scale. the Sierra Mountains was spring and summer, the salty the delay the emigrants ater rw evaporapidly ates in experienced while crossing the heat, and minerals are left behind to form new salt crust. Wind, the Salt Flats. heir wT agons became mired in mud just below the periodic r ,ainstorms and regional climate also play an important part in thin salt crust. Artifacts from the Donner P ,arty-Reed and other changing salt crust conditions throughout each year. emigrants that crossed the trail, are on display in the Donner- he strT atifed layers that form the Salt Flats are almost fve feet thick Reed Museum in Grantsville.

2/11 100M 100M 2/11

www.co.tooele.ut.us

to the Tooele County website: website: County Tooele the to

For additional information please refer refer please information additional For

www.blm.gov/ut

Bureau of Land Management website: website: Management Land of Bureau

For additional information please refer to the the to refer please information additional For

curvature of the earth is purportedly visible to the naked eye. eye. naked the to visible purportedly is earth the of curvature

Salt Flats are one of seven locations around the world where the the where world the around locations seven of one are Flats Salt

Can you see the curvature of the earth? earth? the of curvature the see you Can The Bonneville Bonneville The

the Bureau of Land Management Salt Lake Field Offce. Offce. Field Lake Salt Management Land of Bureau the

commercial flming permits are required and may be obtained from from obtained be may and required are permits flming commercial

should not be driven upon when they are submerged in water. water. in submerged are they when upon driven be not should

salt except during special events. Organized group permits and and permits group Organized events. special during except salt

is corrosive and should be washed off of vehicles. The Salt Flats Flats Salt The vehicles. of off washed be should and corrosive is

required to take personal photos, view the area, or drive on the the on drive or area, the view photos, personal take to required

the Salt Flats is hazardous and has resulted in fatalities. Salt residue residue Salt fatalities. in resulted has and hazardous is Flats Salt the

When do I need a permit? permit? a need I do When A permit or entrance fee is not not is fee entrance or permit A

may become suddenly stuck in underlying mud. Getting stuck on on stuck Getting mud. underlying in stuck suddenly become may

cycles and ATVs are permitted on the Salt Flats. Flats. Salt the on permitted are ATVs and cycles

However, avoid driving along the edge of the salt crust as your vehicle vehicle your as crust salt the of edge the along driving avoid However,

areas. Reservations for spectators are not required. Bicycles, motor Bicycles, required. not are spectators for Reservations areas. -

the Salt Flats are dry, the surface is generally safe to drive upon. upon. drive to safe generally is surface the dry, are Flats Salt the

entrance fee and following route markers to designated viewing viewing designated to markers route following and fee entrance

Flats Travel Advisory, which is available at www.blm.gov/ut. When When www.blm.gov/ut. at available is which Advisory, Travel Flats

on the Salt Flats? Flats? Salt the on The public can gain access by paying an an paying by access gain can public The

when you plan to return. Review and adhere to the Bonneville Salt Salt Bonneville the to adhere and Review return. to plan you when

Is it safe to drive on the Salt Flats? Salt the on drive to safe it Is If you drive on the Salt Salt the on drive you If fats next to the Salt Flats access road. road. access Flats Salt the to next fats

adjacent public lands. During events participants camp on the mud mud the on camp participants events During lands. public adjacent mandatory to maintain public safety. safety. public maintain to mandatory

health and safety, and to protect natural resources. There are no no are There resources. natural protect to and safety, and health

and open to the public most of the year. During permitted events events permitted During year. the of most public the to open and

Flats? Salt the on drive anyone Can No person may may person No town of Wendover. Wendover. of town

lodging and other services are available at Exit 4 or in the nearby nearby the in or 4 Exit at available are services other and lodging own risk and is only recommended when the surface is entirely dry. dry. entirely is surface the when recommended only is and risk own

on the Salt Flats after the paved access road ends. Food, fuel, fuel, Food, ends. road access paved the after Flats Salt the on

de-sac is at the end of the road. Travel on the Salt Flats is at your your at is Flats Salt the on Travel road. the of end the at is de-sac

able on the Salt Flats. There are no surface improvements or signs signs or improvements surface no are There Flats. Salt the on able

- cul A miles. three for east due heads and right turns road paved

Tooele County, Utah Utah County, Tooele

What facilities are available? available? are facilities What - avail facilities no are There From there drive north toward the Silver Island Mountains. The The Mountains. Island Silver the toward north drive there From

road leading to the Salt Flats is reached by taking Exit 4 off I-80. I-80. off 4 Exit taking by reached is Flats Salt the to leading road

dangers in the summer. summer. the in dangers Salt Flats Flats Salt

80 before the state border at Wendover, Utah. The paved access access paved The Utah. Wendover, at border state the before 80

clothing and plenty of water. Dehydration and heat exhaustion are are exhaustion heat and Dehydration water. of plenty and clothing

Where are the Bonneville Salt Flats? Flats? Salt Bonneville the are Where The Salt Flats are are Flats Salt The during warm weather months. UV radiation can be intense on on intense be can radiation UV months. weather warm during

Bonneville Bonneville occur often thunderstorms and winds Strong summer. in digits

temperatures can range from below freezing in winter to triple triple to winter in freezing below from range can temperatures Frequently asked questions questions asked Frequently

Flats? Salt the on like weather the is What

Daytime Daytime BLM

The Bonneville Salt Flats are one of Earth’s most unique land- near the center and only an inch or two at the outer edges. The Salt forms. Located 120 miles west of Salt Lake City in Tooele County, Utah, Flats are just over 46 square miles in size (30,000 acres), which the Salt Flats are about fve miles wide and 12 miles long. They are equates to about 147 million tons, or 99 million cubic yards, of salt. comprised mostly of sodium chloride, or table salt. Like the Great Salt Lake, the Salt Flats are a remnant of ancient Ice Age Lake Bonneville, Where did the name come from? In 1833, explorer Joseph which covered over one-third of Utah from about 32,000 to 10,000 R. Walker mapped around the Great Salt Lake. He also crossed the years ago. The Salt northern perimeter of the Salt Flats while working for Capt. Benjamin Flats are managed by L.E. Bonneville. At that time it was common for people to name What are the the Bureau of Land signifcant landmarks after their employers. It is from Capt. Bonneville Management. They that the Salt Flats and Lake Bonneville derive their name. There is no are on the National known historical record of Bonneville himself ever seeing the Salt Flats Bonneville Register of Historic or Great Salt Lake. Places, and are desig- Salt Flats? nated as an “Area of Early human history Researchers have determined that primitive Critical Environmental humans lived there more than 10,000 years ago at nearby Danger Concern” because of their geology, history and scenic beauty. A place Cave. Where did these people come from? How did they live? What to preserve and protect, the Bonneville Salt Flats attract thousands of reliable food sources were in the area to sustain them? Although Lake visitors each year. Bonneville was receding at the time, did it provide them with fresh What happens on the Salt Flats today? Automotive water and food? These questions have only been partially answered endurance and land speed racing are perhaps responsible for the Salt How did the Bonneville Salt Flats form? When Lake by archaeologists. Digging or disturbing historical sites is illegal. The Flats’ global renown. The Salt Flats were mostly a local fascination Bonneville was at its highest level approximately 17,000 years ago, Archaeological Resources Protection Act provides penalties up to when Teddy Tetzlaff drove a Blitzen Benz to an unoffcial speed of the water exceeded 1,000 feet deep over the Bonneville Salt Flats. $250,000 and fve years imprisonment for violators. 141.73 mph in 1914. Since then land-speed racing on the Salt Flats Evidence of this great depth has grown enormously. Every summer and early fall, professional is seen as horizontal terraces Recent human history and amateur teams from around the world compete for land-speed and escarpments on the IDAHO Trapper and frontiersman records in different vehicle classes. Events such as August’s “Speed sides of the nearby Silver Jedediah Smith crossed the Salt Week,” September’s “World of Speed” and October’s “World Finals,” Island Mountains. As Lake Logan WYOMING Flats while returning to Utah transform the Salt Flats into a magnet for land-speed drivers and Bonneville receded, evapora- from an expedition to California spectators. The fastest recorded speed on the Salt Flats is 622.407 tion left large concentra- in 1827. John C. Fremont and mph, set by Gary Gabolich in 1970 in his “Blue Flame” rocket car.The tions of dissolved minerals Ogden his U.S. government-sponsored Salt Flats also host a variety of other events every year.The Salt Flats deposited in surrounding expedition crossed the heart of are also internationally renowned as a unique backdrop for flming soils. These minerals include Wendover Salt Lake City the Salt Flats in 1845 while trying major motion pictures, fashion layouts, and automobile commercials. potash, which is commer- Bonneville Tooele to fnd a shorter overland cially used as fertilizer, and Salt Flats Provo route to the Pacifc Ocean. halite (table salt). The Salt The next year Fremont’s Flats are comprised of ap- route across the Salt Flats proximately 90% salt. Today, would become known as shallow groundwater fows UTAH the Hastings Cutoff as in from the surrounding wa- part of the California Trail. tershed, picks up dissolved Promoted by Lansford minerals along the way, and COLORADO Hastings as a faster, easier percolates upward to the Milford route to California, Hastings Salt Flats’ surface. During Cutoff proved to be just the cooler months (November NEVADA Ancient Lake Bonneville opposite for the Donner- to May), this groundwa- Reed Party of 1846. What ter foods the Salt Flats Today’s Great Salt Lake contributed to the party’s several inches deep. When infamous winter survival in temperatures rise in late Relative distances and locations on this map are approximate and are not to scale. the Sierra Mountains was spring and summer, the salty the delay the emigrants water rapidly evaporates in experienced while crossing the heat, and minerals are left behind to form new salt crust. Wind, the Salt Flats. Their wagons became mired in mud just below the periodic rainstorms, and regional climate also play an important part in thin salt crust. Artifacts from the Donner-Reed Party, and other changing salt crust conditions throughout each year. emigrants that crossed the trail, are on display in the Donner- The stratifed layers that form the Salt Flats are almost fve feet thick Reed Museum in Grantsville.