Robert Smithson, Spiral Jetty, 1970 - Corinne, Utah (September, 2023)
Background
It is what the name suggests. That unlike most jettys that simply go straight into a body of water, this 15 ft. wide jetty eventually curves and coils into a counterclockwise spiral in the Great Salk Lake in Utah. Websites say that it is 1,500 ft. long, but I believe this is the distance from the start and end of the jetty itself, not the distance it actually goes out into the lake. Over three weeks, 6,000 tons of black basalt rocks and earth from the area were used to form it, and it was originally designed to sit just a few inches above the water line, which fluctuated over time.
However, since 2002, Spiral Jetty has been visible as the lake has receded. Read this NYTimes article about the dangers of this fast receding key body of water for Utah. Since 1980 it has shrank by more than two-thirds, and this is heavily due to human causes of diverting water sources that usually replenish it. Now it sits in an entirely dry former area of the lake, it would take a miraculous amount of water for it to return to its original state.
Seemingly everyone calls Spiral Jetty seminal to Land Art. This seems to be due to the fact that it was the largest Land Art piece at the beginning years of the movement. People also like to how it interacts with the lake and how over time that lack of interaction as it has receded has been a statement of its own. Robert Smithson is considered one fo the most influential Land Artists. As a non-art person, I can only regurgitate what I’ve read. I can’t explain it beyond that he made ambitious land art early in the movement.
Travel
You’ll need a car to make it there. It is a 2 hour drive from the Salt Lake City International Airport. You’ll drive north on I-15, then heading West around Brigham City on Route 83. When you pass Brigham City / Corinne, there basically is no more food or fuel, so stock up on what you may need there (or before). Follow signs for the Golden Spike National Historic Park. The Golden Spike Visitor Center has clean water and bathrooms for you to use between 9 - 5 daily depending on the season. Also, they ask that you do not clean your salt and dirt laden shoes in the bathrooms, so be respectful.
Continue past the Visitor Center and you can follow signs for Spiral Jetty for another half hour. It’s a beautiful and pretty desolate drive. We didn’t pass a single car enroute. This road varies in quality, but should be doable with any type of vehicle. You eventually arrive to a well demarcated dirt parking area. When we arrived there, there were a few vehicles that had some folks who had camped out overnight there. Seemed cold… and buggy. But they showed us some pictures of the stars, and they looked great.
It’s free to visit. Just the standard rules, don’t leave a trace or ruin it for anyone.
Definitely climb up the hill to the information plaque and beyond to get a better view of the installation. It’s hard to fully appreciate it from the ground.
We also wandered out to the Great Salt Lake, about a half mile beyond Spiral Jetty now. It has a unique shoreline, so it’s certainly worth the walk out there. I even took some wedges of salt, that randomly a friend of mine in New York ate without question.
It’s worth spending time at the Golden Spike National Historical Park. They do reenactments daily during the summer (arrive before 10 AM and they bring out trains), they have the aforementioned water and restrooms available, and they have a gift shop with some Spiral Jetty related paraphenalia. Mattos got a great coffee table book. The rangers were very friendly and all the attendees of the reenactment were adorable elderly train nerds or children. It’s a pleasant atmosphere. Another nearby stop that’s hokey and art related is Marble Park in Tremonton, Utah. A 30 minute drive from the Golden Spike. This small free chaotic park is worth a stroll and another break as you move on with your travels.
Experience
We went in September 2023. Arrived in Salt Lake City late Friday night and rented a car (Nissan Rogue AWD SUV from Alamo). We drove up to Ogden and stayed the night there. Saturday, before dawn we hopped into the car and drove out to Spiral Jetty. Arriving before the sun rose, the drive was beautiful in the half light and the color of the sky was lovely. We were the first to arrive, but there were three vehicles there with people who had stayed overnight in the general area. Mostly to stargaze it seemed.
As an art history nerd, Mattos was thrilled to finally be there and see this piece. I found it underwhelming compared to others we had seen. It didn’t help that there was a ridiculous amount of mosquito adjacent bugs flying around. They were everywhere, along the former shore and I must have killed hundreds that just lazily sat on my jeans. Keep your doors and windows closed when you arrive. Otherwise they’ll easily get inside. As you walk out into the former lake, the bugs become significantly less of an issue. So that was a benefit.
It’s probably for the best that you stay on the jetty, as without water, the sandy non-jetty portions wil retain footprints for longer. That higher contrast would be nice, but unfortunately it has already been pretty well trodden. Sunrise was beautiful as it came over the ridge.
We mostly had the place to ourselves as the campers packed up and left. We were surprised, given it was a Saturday, but perhaps we were just there too early. We wandered beyond Spiral Jetty and walked the dried lakebed to the shore. It gives serious “Holes” (Shia LeBeouf film) energy. It had a unique salty foamy edge. Very odd, haunting and beautiful.
We left by 9 and went to the Golden Spike National Historic Park Visitor Center, just in time to hydrate, shop, and then watch the replica trains come out for the reenactment. It’s fee is $20 a vehicle and certainly worth it, with the convenient timing. It was quite wholesome and enjoyable. There were only a few dozen people there. That gift shop does overcharge for Spiral Jetty content. A postcard for a mediocre image of Spiral Jetty was $4.00 versus a well designed graphic postcard of Golden Spike was 75 cents, but hey, it goes to a good cause.
We ate brunch at Golden Spike Burgers in Corinne. It was enjoyable, but nothing special. Swung by the aforementioned Marble Park (see two of the pictures below) and went bowling at the Grille Restaurant too (to stay out of the hot sun) before we drove off to our next land art destination (Sun Tunnels). I’m apparently good at bowling in Utah, got my first ever Turkey.
Summary
I wouldn’t recommend it as a must see, but if you’re in the area, it’s worth a gander. It is just remote enough to enjoy the isolation, without having to over plan or over prepare. You should be fine with minimal effort, and it’s cool to walk around and explore the Great Salt Lake and the Golden Spike Park.
You should definitely go if you’re a fan of Land Art. Smithson is apparently an icon, so it’s probably a must.
Additional Information
There are plenty of better pictures than mine. Particularly those using drones or were there when the water levels interacted with the piece. Check out these galleries:
Here’s a good guide and information on Spiral Jetty as well.
Sources
Utah Museum of Fine Arts, "Spiral Jetty," Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Accessed April 20, 2024, https://umfa.utah.edu/spiral-jetty.
Dia Art Foundation, "Robert Smithson: Spiral Jetty," Dia Art Foundation, Accessed April 20, 2024, https://www.diaart.org/visit/visit-our-locations-sites/robert-smithson-spiral-jetty.
Holt/Smithson Foundation, "Spiral Jetty," Holt/Smithson Foundation, Accessed April 20, 2024, https://holtsmithsonfoundation.org/spiral-jetty.
Scott D. Pierce, "Climate change, human use, could mean 'end of the line' for the Great Salt Lake," Deseret News, May 21, 2023, Accessed April 20, 2024, https://www.deseret.com/2023/5/21/23727301/climate-change-great-salt-lake-utah/#:~:text=Records%20show%20the%20lake%20was,seemed%20imminent%20just%20last%20year.
