Stansbury Island is the second largest

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

within the Great Salt Lake in the U.S. state of

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

. Located in Tooele County, it is considered an island even though a

dirt Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include: * Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains * Dust: a gener ...

causeway connects it to the mainland. Stansbury Island was named after

Howard Stansbury Howard Stansbury (February 8, 1806 – April 17, 1863) was a major in the U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers. His most notable achievement was leading a two-year expedition (1849–1851) to survey the Great Salt Lake and its surroundings ...

, the leader of a government expedition that surveyed the lake in 1849. A biking trail is located on the island. Petroglyphs and two caves large enough to explore are also located on the island. Its peak is Castle Rock, at 6647 feet above sea level.

Camping Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more na ...

is permitted in most areas.

Geography and geology

Stansbury Island is longitudinally aligned and is approximately long, wide, and in area. The island is a desert mountain/mountain range, with a few fresh

water Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...

seeps along the eastern side. The western side lacks water. The island is uninhabited and is used as a

winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...

feeding ground for

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

. Average annual

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...

is approximately six inches. The rocks on the island are mostly early

Paleozoic The Paleozoic (or Palaeozoic) Era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. The name ''Paleozoic'' ( ;) was coined by the British geologist Adam Sedgwick in 1838 by combining the Greek words ''palaiós'' (, "old") and ' ...

in age. Precambrian strata are present at the north tip and along a portion of the northeast shore. The

quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tec ...

ledge on the southern part of the island is Devonian in age. The remaining northern third of the island dates back to the Cambrian Period, consisting of a small outcrop of Tintic Quartzite, but mainly middle Cambrian

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, shale, and

dolomite Dolomite may refer to: *Dolomite (mineral), a carbonate mineral *Dolomite (rock), also known as dolostone, a sedimentary carbonate rock *Dolomite, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community *Dolomite, California, United States, an unincor ...

. The rest of the island is composed of Upper Cambrian to Upper Mississippian strata, mostly limestone, dolomite, quartzite, and shale. The southern half of the island was folded into a southward

anticline In structural geology, an anticline is a type of fold that is an arch-like shape and has its oldest beds at its core, whereas a syncline is the inverse of an anticline. A typical anticline is convex up in which the hinge or crest is the ...

. The northern half of the island is composed of a series of northwesterly trending fault blocks in which the strata dip to the west. The faults in the north section are

transverse Transverse may refer to: *Transverse engine, an engine in which the crankshaft is oriented side-to-side relative to the wheels of the vehicle *Transverse flute, a flute that is held horizontally * Transverse force (or ''Euler force''), the tangen ...

and may have some strike–slip component. Claret Cup cacti grow in abundance on the island, which forms the northern limit of their natural range. Unusually large juniper trees were noted by Howard Stansbury in his 1850 survey of the island.

References

External links

Stansbury Island Trail
- Utah.com

- UtahMountainBiking.com
Stansbury Island Trail
- Tooele County {{authority control Landforms of Tooele County, Utah Bureau of Land Management areas in Utah Protected areas of Tooele County, Utah Lake islands of Utah Great Salt Lake Islands of Utah

Geography and geology

See also

References

External links