Bonneville Salt Flats

Do you like to drive fast? Then the Bonneville Salt Flats is the place for you! The Bonneville Salt Flats were formed when ancient Lake Bonneville drained and evaporated, leaving the salts behind on the silty soil. The Great Salt Lake in Salt Lake City is a remnant of Lake Bonneville. You can see the ancient shorelines in the mountains behind the salt flats. The ancient lake drained about 14,500 years ago after a natural sand and rock dam failed. At its maximum, the lake was over 1000 ft deep! The current lake has a maximum of 45 ft depth in high water and contains 9-28% salinity (compared to 3% in the oceans).

The Bonneville Speedway is an 80 ft wide, 10 mile long track through the salt flats. The second fastest land speed record of 630 mph (1015 kmh) was set here in 1970. That record stood for 13 years before being broken in the Black Rock Desert.

After taking exit 4, you follow the signs north and then east. Eventually the road ends and you are free to drive on the salt flats! The actual track is marked by two orange cones, but they are hard to see. You can drive out there as fast as you want. Just try not to get lost or run over the cones. If you drive with the windows down you can hear the salt crackling as you drive over it. You might want to wash your car afterwards to get rid of the corrosive salt. Don't drive out there if its wet because the mud underneath the salt is very soft and you can get stuck or destroy the salt surface.

If you aren't planning on driving (fast) on the salt flats, this stop might be a little boring for you as there isn't much to see.