Huh?..Utah Makes TOP TEN FLATTEST Places on Earth?

Utah is not a place you would expect to find on list of locations that are as flat as a pancake. I would totally expect Kansas on there but there is nothing flat about the beehive state. Well, except for that one place. 

Giant Lakes Can Make Really Flat Places

In the desert west of the Great Salt Lake is what is left after that part of Lake Bonneville dried up. It left a massive area of white sand known as the Bonneville Salt Flatts. Redbull.com placed it as 7th on its list of ten flattest places in the world. 

It has been the site of almost every world speed record as the flat surface in all directions makes 900 mph reasonably safe to attempt. Here is some of the history and a look at the records that have been set.

Early Events of the Area 

The history of the place is fascinating. It was named for Captain Benjamin L. E. Bonneville who sent a trapper named Walker out to map the area. The ancient lake and the salt flats were named after Bonneville even though he probably never visited it.  

The white surface is made up of what didn’t leave with the water and is mostly potash with a thickness of six feet in some parts. Even though has been a site for racecars setting speed records, it wasn’t good for wagons. 

Read More: Revealing Utah History: Cowboys Didn't Actually Carry One of These?

The Donner-Reed Party broke wagons and lost wheels while taking this route on their way to the ill-fated trip across the Sierra Nevada's.  Too bad their initial problems didn’t turn them around. 

It seems ironic and interesting that a state known for towering mountains and vertical cliffs would also have one of the flattest places on earth. Whoever created it must have a pretty good sense of irony.