Antelope Island: Fielding Garr Ranch

 Fielding Garr Ranch is a very old ranch on the south end of Antelope Island. It features 133 years of ranching history. Its a pretty neat place to see some ranching history. Not to mention some great views of the island, lake and surrounding mountains.

Quick Details:

Length: I didn't turn my pedometer app on, but I think we did about a half mile or so, and did not explore the north end today, so that might make it closer to a mile or so.
Trail Type: Wiggly loop, wiggly loop de loop options.
Difficulty: Meh, its fairly flat and easy going DR3.
Elevation Gain: Maybe 40 feet.
Restroom: There are flush toilets (currently closed) and vault toilets,
Dogs? Yes, leashed. Please clean up after your furry friend.
Other Info: Fee area, $15.00 per car. I also recommend checking their website for current conditions like bugs etc. Also, special conditions. Today we were surprised to learn there was no running water in the park. Luckily we brought along plenty for both of us. Also, be sure to have bug spray handy if needed.

To Get Here:

This is the furthest south on the island that is currently paved. From the causeway, turn left, take the first left again onto the East Island Road. Go about 10.7 miles and the ranch will be on the left. If you hit a fence, or dirt road, you went too far.

The Trail:

Meh, not the best shot of the ranch sign (PSP).

Heading down into the ranch.

This little building off of the sheering barn is not listed on the map, it is the museum, where you can stop and pick up a self guided tour map.

Old ‘no trespassing’ sign.

Old ranching tools.

Old saddles.

The blacksmith shop was not open today. From the pamphlet: The blacksmith shop was very important because of the ranch’s isolated location. Trips into town were rare, and tools had to be repaired or made.

Sheep Camp wagon. 10.000 sheep were kept on the island each spring. Wagons like this provided housing for shepherds and are still used today,

It is awfully cramped.

Mechanics Pit. I mean, this one is pretty self explanatory as similar pits are in just about every mechanic shop nowadays. But here is what the pamphlet says: Trucks and tractors would be parked on the wooden rails and the mechanic could work underneath to change oil or do other maintenance.

The Bunk House/Cellar. We’ll come back to this is a moment.

The back porch of the Ranch House. I didn’t think to get a picture of the full house today.

Built in 1848 it is thought to be the oldest building in Utah still on it's original foundation. Wow!

Like most of our old buildings, this one is supposedly haunted as well. During the Halloween season they offer ghost tours here. I have kind of been interested in doing it sometime, but it just hasn’t happened yet. Maybe this year.

They recently put a stucco layer on the outside too.

Here is what it looked like in 2020

The Kitchen. During the summer the ranch foreman had 15-20 ranch hands to keep fed. The foreman’s family lived in the house and it was the wife’s job to prepare three hearty meals each day.

Old stove.

Kitchen counter with old sink and some old kitchen tools.

Another counter with more old stuff.

Old table. This looks like it might be from the 60’s or 70’s.

Laundry room, with super old machines.

Old bathroom. It looks like it is plumbed, but I am not sure. There is a rope preventing entry. It is not for public use, if that is not clear.

Again.

The Dining Room. All of the workers squeezed into the room at 6:00 for breakfast. They worked until lunch at 12:00, had a short break, then went back to work until 5:00. After dinner, if there was still work to do, they would stay out until dark.

This looks like a kids bedroom off of the dining room.

More dining room.

The Living Room - This is the oldest part of the house, built in 1848. (wow!) The Kitchen was added in the 1880’s and the restrooms in the 1940’s. 

There are more than 1 restroom? I didn’t see any other ones, at least not in the house. Or maybe it is a typo and they meant the rest of the rooms? I couldn't find anything to confirm either idea.

Old lamps.

Neat old daybed.

This was the largest bedroom in the house, so I assume it is the master suite. It also has adult looking décor that helps to back that theory up.

The living room again.

Another large bedroom. This looks like it might have belonged to a teenager? I’m not sure, the pamphlet doesn’t say anything about the side rooms.

Back to the living room. Old record player… or wait, what came before the record player? Possibly a gramophone? Ooh, I was close. It looks like it is a phonograph. Here is a similar one (outside link).

Back to the dining room.

The ranch was occupied from the point of it being built in 1848 until 1981 when Utah decided to make the island a State Park.

I didn’t notice a plaque today, but I was running away from a loud ass family. Anyway, from what I remember, they stucco’d the outside of the Ranch House a few years ago, and put this little window in that shows the original brick work.

The Cellar - This underground room was used as a pantry for all the food the foreman’s wife needed to fix meals. There were lots of canned goods and preserved foods.

Inside, the left side.

The right side. It is a little bit on the creepy side.

Speaking of creepy, we were hearing heavy footsteps above us, and expected our next stop to be a little crowded, but it was empty when we got there. Now, the ranch was a very, very busy part of the island today so there could have been people who left by the time we made it around to the other side, but we did not see anybody it might have been. I mean it only took about 5 seconds to get from here to the other side. Probably nothing paranormal, considering the crowds, but still a little weird.

Bunk House - This is directly on top of the cellar. Landis mentioned that these were very tight and crowded quarters, and I told him it was the workers bunkers, the don't need no privacy! (totally being sarcastic). Here is what the pamphlet had to say: Half the ranch hands lived in this area, with the other half in the room next to the blacksmith shop. Space was tight and privacy was non existent, so you would get to know the others very well.

2 beds share a small table.

A table or trunk they could play card games on, again, not in the pamphlet so just guessing based on context.

The other side.

Spring House - The spring house was the first refrigerator on Antelope Island- -power was not available until the 1950s. Water evaporating in this room kept it cool enough to store milk and cheese.

I swear you used to be able to go inside, and maybe you still can. We saw some kids locking it it up for the day. Perhaps they just closed it a little bit early today? Meh, we have seen it, so not the end of the world. It is the last remaining spring house on the island (there used to be one at the Frary Homestead). So far I have not been able to find another one in Utah.

Here is what this inside looked like back in 2015.

The little forest below the ranch house.

Normally we see some neat birds in here, but, it was a little crowded today and there were a lot of children screaming like banshees, so there was nothing today.

More forest.

Looking up.

Messy forest.

Neat little tree arch.

Another.

Little pond from the run off from the spring house.

Panoramic.

Giant root ball of a fallen tree.

Run off from the spring house.

The upper pond.

From above.

Broken tree. One of the many trees that fell down during one of our windpocolypse events in the last few years.

The front of the spring house.

The other side of the Cellar/Bunkhouse, with the ranch house to the left.

Spring house again.

The shearing barn, grain silo, and other equipment.

I have absolutely no idea what this could be.

I have absolutely nothing to back this up, other than the appearance, but I suspect these might have been old outhouses. Now they appear to be sheds.

Old grain silo.

Inside.

We did not do the Corrals or Equipment areas today, as we did them last time we were here.

A quick jaunt through the Shearing Barn - This barn was built in the 1920s and was a big step for the ranch. With shears operated by an engine, workers could shear a sheep in a few minutes instead of a half hour.

We did not go into the upper shearing area this time, but we did last time.

Fun metal sign.

Old equipment in front of the shearing barn.

Daddy Stump Ridge.

To the south with the Oquirrh’s.

We have done it before, but it is always nice to go back through history. I feel like every time we come I find something new. But, wow. was it super crowded today! I can't recall ever seeing this many people here, and it was a little bit frustrating, so we ended our self guided tour a little bit early, but only skipped the north bit that we explored extensively last time, so no big loss. I love the history, but I am going to drop this down to 6 out of 10 squirrels due to the crowds, and well, the pamphlet not providing as much information as I would have liked.

As for difficulty, it is pretty mild, some paved, some hard packed earth. DR3.

Dogs are allowed, on the outside grounds. They are not allowed in any of the buildings. So either leave them home, or plan on just peering in through windows. Or work out a system with your partner to trade off.