$105, includes transportation, a tour, and a box lunch.

Join us for a day of exploration at two sites where the landscape holds extraordinary stories — one etched in iron and ambition, the other coiled in rock and reflection.

Our first stop is Golden Spike National Historical Park at Promontory Summit, where on May 10, 1869, the joining of the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads completed the first transcontinental railroad. During our visit, we will have the opportunity to witness the 10:00 am arrival of the Jupiter and the 10:30 am arrival of the No. 119 — working replicas of the original locomotives that met at Promontory Summit during the famous "wedding of the rails" ceremony that united the nation by rail. The park offers a window into the remarkable convergence of cultures, labor, and ambition that reshaped the nation and transformed the land beneath it.

From there, we travel a short distance to the northeastern shore of the Great Salt Lake, where Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty (1970) extends 1,500 feet into the lakebed in a counterclockwise coil of black basalt rock and earth. Constructed from more than 6,000 tons of material gathered from the site itself, the earthwork engages directly with its surroundings — the rust-red water, the salt-crusted shore, the open sky — and with ideas of entropy, time, and the slow transformation of landscape. For 30 years, Spiral Jetty lay submerged beneath the rising waters of the lake. It reemerged in the early 2000s, but with the rapid decline of Great Salt Lake, it now sits a mile from the water's edge. Dr. Emily Lawhead, Associate Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art and Annie Burbidge Ream, Co-Director of Learning and Engagement, K-12 and Family Programs at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, will offer a short talk on Smithson and the work before attendees explore the site on their own.

Note: The bus ride between Salt Lake City and the Spiral Jetty is approximately 2 hours each way, offering ample time to connect with fellow attendees. This tour is mostly outdoors on open, unpaved terrain. Portions of the tour will be in rural areas with limited cell service. Restrooms are available at Golden Spike National Historical Park but not at the Spiral Jetty site. Attendees should wear sturdy shoes and dress in layers. Long sleeves/pants, hats, sunglasses, and sunblock are recommended. Please note that the Spiral Jetty site is not ADA accessible. The tour will proceed rain or shine. Attendees are encouraged to learn more about the Spiral Jetty before the tour by exploring resources here.

A trip out to Spiral Jetty is an unforgettable adventure into remote desert terrain. By registering for this tour, participants acknowledge that they undertake the journey at their own risk and that the Western Museums Association, the Utah Museums Association, the University of Utah, and the Utah Museum of Fine Arts assume no liability for personal injuries or property damage arising from participation in this event.