Nomad Life - Day 135

With another nice day of weather on tap, I decided to visit Antelope Island (which several of the locals had talked up very loudly).  First, though, I had to get through my telework day.  Starting at 0420 (without alarm), I started my job online.  I did take one break for breakfast in the Lobby of Air Force Inns (Hill AFB) at 0730 and returned to work immediately after that.  The early stop, coupled with skipping lunch, allowed me to finish my telework at 1330 and depart the Base at 1400.  I drove west towards the Great Salt Lake, stopping for $2.39 gas at Smiths (Grocery Store) Fuel at 1420.  During this time, I'd been following Antelope Drive and soon reached a toll booth for the Davis County Causeway - this location also served as the entrance for Antelope Island State Park.  After getting information (a great map) and paying my access fee (1425), I began my drive across the (mostly dried up) Salt Lake.  Outside, temps were in the 40s and the weather was clear and overcast.  There was some interesting terrain to the north and west and I made a few stops for photos on the Causeway.  Unfortunately, I got another spam call related to my Holiday Inn timeshare during this time.  Hoping to try to stop these, I ended up talking with a representative for the correct office for a bit.  In the end, I learned that my name, address and phone number had been shared with everyone (due to Florida State Law).  Dang - my normal care in dealing with sensitive information has usually been pretty good...  In any case, I couldn't do anything more and was in a good location for forgetting First World troubles like this...  Continuing my drive across the Causeway until I reached the Island itself, I started west at a fork in the road and soon reached Ladyfinger Point.  While there, I walked on a rocky, sandy trail.  The air seemed cooler than it had been for a few days so curtailed my hike and returned to the parking lot.  Once there, I encountered two girls who had their Stand-up Paddleboards on their backs.  We talked a little about the difficulty of reaching the water's edge (the Great Salt Lake was much lower than when I'd visited in previous years).  They assured me that all the trouble was worth the effort.  Departing from Ladyfinger Point, I drove southwest and, almost immediately, encountered buffalo near the road!  I eagerly snapped photos before continuing on my way to nearby Buffalo Point.  From that high point on Antelope Island, I could see even larger mountains towards the south and west - they looked very imposing with their completely white coating of snow.  I only walked a little bit here and then drove to check out White Rock Campground/Beach - the water was even further from the picnic areas and parking lot there...  Next, I went looking for the "Bison Corral" I'd seen on the map but ended up at a maintenance shed.  After that, I backtracked towards the Mainland, hoping to get inside the Visitor Center (I thought I'd missed the turn earlier).  After I'd made a complete circuit of the roads on the north end of the Island, I  determined that the VC was under renovation (i.e., closed).  Oh well - I'd heard good things about it...  Unfortunately, this failed mission forced me to complete a second circuit of the roads.  Bonus: this time, the Bison were right on the road itself and I got amazing photos.  When I reached the East Side Ranch Road, I continued south and found even more herds of buffalo spread out on the beaches and hills on both sides of the road.  I even had to wait for some of them to cross.  At that point, it started sprinkling and sadly admitted that hiking was probably not going to be possible.  Instead, I checked out several sites of interest and trailheads (some closed) along the way. The whole time, I was thinking (hoping) that I might return for a hike in the future...  Eventually, I arrived at the Fielding Garr Ranch.  It was closed but I was able to walk around a bit (I carried an umbrella).  Meanwhile, it was getting colder and windier.  From this point, I believe I Salt Lake City and suburbs on the other side of the (mostly dried) Great Salt Lake.  With a road closed to the south of this location, I reluctantly got back in car and backtracked to the north.  I'd hoped I'd be able to drive south to the South Island Trail and see how a land bridge was forming and making the name "Island" suspect.  Maybe next time... I enjoyed seeing the Bison herds during my backtrack drive.  When I reached the Causeway again, it was raining steadily (temps still in low 40s).  As I reached the Mainland again, I got some interesting views of LDS Temples in the Syracuse area.  On the way back to the Base, I ordered dinner at Jersey Mike's for the first time, using a gift card from Erin & Austin.  Starting at 1705, I ate in the restaurant, enjoying my "Mike's way" sandwich.  By the time I finished, it was very dark and wet outside.  I made it back to Hill AFB without my Google Maps - on the way, I crossed through the Weber State campus.  I was in my room by 1800 and worked on finances, organizing, etc..  Since I'd only walked about one mile throughout the day (including my visit to the State Park), I walked around outside to complete my 10K step goal.  Done with that (2000), I spent the rest of the night watching movies and finally we3nt to bed at 2200.  Even though it rained in the end, I'm very glad I got to see such an interesting place as Antelope Island!