SALT LAKE CITY — The public has one last chance to see a unique geological phenomenon at the Great Salt Lake.
Rangers are taking visitors on tours of the mirabilite mounds, just as they have the past two years.
Sunday will be the last day that these unique tours will be offered. Tours were also held last weekend.
“These salt mineral deposits can only be seen during specific winter conditions and we do not know how long these formations will last this year,” Utah State Parks wrote.
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Participants must sign up by Saturday at 5 p.m. Online registration can be found on the Great Salt Lake State Park’s website. Tours will be held Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the tour groups are each limited to 20 people.
Don’t forget to sign up for the last day of Mirabilite tours! They’ll be held Sunday but registration closes tomorrow at 5pm
Use this link to register
Jan 30th ONLY pre-registration link:https://t.co/sGT49EWn2h pic.twitter.com/2V2vzNMHsr
— Great Salt Lake USP (@GreatSaltLakeSP) January 28, 2022
Park rangers suggest wearing boots that are water-resistant or waterproof, as the tour may include walking through deep mud.
In late 2019, a ranger at the Great Salt Lake State Park noticed the mounds on the north shore of the lake. The state parks service said they build up when sodium-sulfate-rich spring water hits the cold winter air.
In January 2020, just a few months after they were discovered, geologists said these are typically found on polar ice caps and on Mars. October 2019 was the first time they had been seen — or at least, officially documented — at the Great Salt Lake.
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