The road to Antelope Island State Park, 25 miles north of Salt Lake City, is a 20-minute straight shot west, but it feels like time travel as you leave the bustle of modern civilization behind. Antelope Island is the largest island in the Great Salt Lake. It is a craggy adventure destination home to camping, birding and 36 miles of hiking and mountain bike trails meandering among free-roaming bison and antelope herds who keep watch over alluvial plains and Precambrian rocks that are among the oldest in America. The roads are excellent for auto touring and bicycling.

Antelope Island is an oasis in the middle of the lake. It's a Utah state park that was once considered for national park designation. To understand why, you'll have to see it for yourself. Make a reservation on the Utah State Parks reservation site.

$10/car up to 8 people. Senior (Utah residents over 62 years of age): $5/car up to 8 people. Bicycles and Pedestrians: $3/person.

From Salt Lake City, head northbound on I-15 for about 40 minutes to the West Antelope Island Drive exit in Syracuse. It's about 20 minutes to the island and park fees are paid at a toll gate prior to the 7-mile causeway. Antelope Island is also an excellent stop on the Yellowstone Loop. Make a reservation on the Utah State Parks reservation site.