About an hour northwest of Salt Lake City, Antelope Island makes for a great and unique day trip. These 9 things to do at Antelope Island with kids will keep you busy all day.
You may have heard of the Great Salt Lake, but did you know there’s a 28,000-acre island in the middle of the lake that you can drive to? Native Americans even inhabited the island more than 6,000 years ago. In 1848, Fielding Garr established the first western ranch on the island (which you can still visit today). Antelope Island is home to free-roaming herds of bison, mule deer, and pronghorn antelope. Other wildlife, such as coyotes, badgers, porcupines, and numerous birds inhabit the island.
From hiking to looking for wildlife to taking a dip in the Great Salt Lake, Antelope Island offers plenty of outdoor fun for the whole family!
1. Climb rocks at Ladyfinger Point
If there’s one thing my kids love to do, it’s climb rocks. All of them love it. Ladyfinger Point has some fun, yet safe, rocks for the kids to climb til their heart’s content! It’s like a natural playground, and although it’s a relatively small area, it’ll keep the kids busy for a while.
2. Hike Buffalo Point Trail
This short (1 mile round-trip) trail offers a gorgeous panoramic view of the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Mountains from the top. There’s plenty of boulders at the top for the kids to scramble over too. It’s a bit steep, but Katie made it when she was 3. This is also an amazing place to watch the sunset. Be sure to bring a flashlight for the way down afterward!
3. Search for buffalo & other wildlife
Since Antelope Island is home to so many types of wildlife, it’s fun to search for them during your visit. The free-range buffalo are probably the easiest to spot, as well as the many types of birds. You’ll likely see some buffalo while you’re driving around the island or hiking, and some might even be right next to the road! While fascinating to watch, please remember that these are wild animals and to keep your distance. In the fall, you can even watch the annual buffalo round-up, where the bison are gathered and tested to make sure the herd is healthy.
4. Eat a bison burger
Open from about mid-February to the end of October, the Island Buffalo Grill serves the best buffalo burger around. With views of the Great Salt Lake, enjoy a unique lunch with your family. And if your kids (or you!) are not adventurous eaters, they have plenty of other options! This is the only place to buy food on the island, so either plan on eating here or bringing your own lunch. And of course, bring plenty of water and snacks!
5. Check out the visitor’s center
Learn about the history of Antelope Island and the Great Salt Lake at the visitor’s center. The exhibit is small, but worth taking a look. Plus, there’s a gift shop and park ranger for any questions you may have. The trail behind the visitor’s center offers great climbing opportunities too. We’ve seen a couple of buffalo near the visitor’s center every time we’ve gone. And let’s face it, these are the best bathrooms in the park. You can even borrow a trail chair for anyone with a mobility need.
6. Visit Fielding Garr Ranch
At the Fielding Garr Ranch, you’ll be immersed in 150 years of ranching history. Explore the old buildings and learn about western ranching on the island. The Fielding Garr Ranch House is not only the oldest continually inhabited Anglo home in the state of Utah, but it’s also the oldest Anglo built house in Utah still on its original foundation. In addition to the main ranch house, you’ll be able to see the blacksmith house, bunk house, grain silos, barns, spring house (there are 40 freshwater springs on the island!), and more. Definitely worth a visit!
7. Play in the sand at the beach
Since the water levels of the Great Salt Lake are shrinking, there’s plenty of soft, white sand to play in at the water’s edge. You do have to walk a bit across the sand and brush from the beach access parking lot to reach the water’s edge, so be prepared for a walk—it’s farther than it looks!
8. Take a dip in the Great Salt Lake
If you’re feeling adventurous, taking a dip in the Great Salt Lake is definitely a unique thing to do! Since the salinity levels are so high, you may find that you’re pretty buoyant while floating in the Great Salt Lake. We’ve only been in the late fall, so it’s been a bit cold to try this, and the lake can get kind of buggy, but how many people can say they’ve visited Antelope Island with kids and swum in the Great Salt Lake? There are showers to rinse off afterwards near the parking lot.
9. Stargaze
Antelope Island State Park is a designated International Dark Sky Park, which means there’s very little light pollution and you can see the stars well at night. Even though the park gates close at 10 pm in the summer and 6 pm in the winter, as long as you’re in the park before closing, you can stay as long as you want. The gates will automatically open for you as you drive out.
During the summer months, the Ogden Astronomical Society offers public star parties; and throughout the year, park staff offers other astronomy programs that can be found under the Events tab on the park website.
Antelope Island offers lots of other hiking trails & places to explore, as well as camping, biking (you can even rent ebikes on site), horseback riding, and more! The spring and summer months can get kind of buggy, so I recommend going in the fall or bringing bug spray. Both times we’ve gone have been in the late fall and the weather has been great and no bugs! It costs $15 per car or $3 if you’re on bike to get in, and is open year-round except on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Visiting Antelope Island with kids is definitely worth your time…my kids love it! What questions do you have about visiting Antelope Island with kids or the Great Salt Lake?
I have been wanting to visit Antelope island for a long time. I need to make a trip!
Stargazing would definitely be at the top of my list!
WOW! That’s a lot of activities to enjoy there!
I was surprised that we spent the whole day! I had to pull out the emergency snacks from my car…haha! And my kids ask to go back all the time!
That is great to know about the visitors center at Antelope Island! My kids love visitor centers like this with educational exhibits about the area. My youngest would be bringing his telescope for the star gazing!
This looks like a fun place! Last summer, we were in the Salt Lake City area for the first time. We stopped at the Lake, but we didn’t have a lot of time to explore. I’d love to go back and see more of the area!
Yes, you’ll have to come back!
I had no idea there was a huge island in the Great Salt Lake – and that you could drive to it! This is a great list of 9 things to do at Antelope Island with kids – so fun and beautiful!
Looks like lots of fun activities…for kids and adults…at Antelope Island!