![]() ![]() Look south from Buffalo Point for an outstanding view of Lake Bonneville terraces carved into the island as high as a thousand feet above the Great Salt Lake's surface. The terraces were eroded by wave action and are relatively flat areas that follow a contour line. The most conspicuous reminders of Lake Bonneville are the ancient terraces etched into the landscape along the lake's former shorelines. Great Salt Lake is the remnant of Lake Bonneville a great ice age lake that rose dramatically from a small saline lake 30,000 years ago. Once in the Great Salt Lake much of the water evaporates leaving the salt behind. Tributary rivers are constantly bringing in small amounts of salt dissolved in their fresh water flow. Great Salt Lake is salty because it does not have an outlet. The first scientific measurements were taken in 1849 and since then the lake level has varied by 20 feet, shifting the shoreline in some places as much as 15 miles. Located in several wide flat basins, a slight rise in water level expands the surface area of the lake considerably. At the current level the Great Salt Lake is approximately 75 miles long and about 35 miles wide. ![]() The Great Salt Lake is the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi River. ![]()
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