Desert Sea

"The Great Salt Lake has a spirit and mind of its own," says naturalist and novelist Terry Tempest Williams. "It is an untamed wilderness, despite what we try to impose on it. I love the lake's unpredictability. It's always changing, always moving, and it allows you the same kind of freedom of expression."

The story of Utah's ever-changing Great Salt Lake is told in A Desert Sea, a nature documentary by award-winning filmmaker John Howe. Williams hosts and narrates the program, which looks at the pristine wilderness area that lies only a few miles from metropolitan Salt Lake City.

"KUED is committed to expanding the horizons of viewers by producing documentaries focusing on the Intermountain West," says KUED General Manager Fred Esplin.

A Desert Sea explores the magic and mystery of America's Dead Sea, tracing its history from prehistoric Lake Bonneville to the Great Salt Lake's status as one of the last remaining shorebird sanctuaries in the United States.

"The Great Salt Lake is much maligned," says producer and primary photographer Howe. " A Desert Sea will reveal facts not many people are aware of. The lake is much more than salt water that smells bad. It's a wilderness area with a wide variety of wildlife adjacent to a city."

Howe credits Williams with being the motivating force behind A Desert Sea, but she in turn credits Howe and his associate producer, Jeff Elstad. "John and Jeff are the spirit behind this project," Williams says. "The footage they've shot is absolute magic, a collage of images that illuminates the lake and invites viewers to take a look at an extraordinary place. For too long we've viewed the Great Salt Lake for what it is not -- it isn't fresh water or lush and green. Now we are presented with what it is. I think viewers will find what they see both inspiring and surprising."

"Desert Sea" sponsors:

R. Harold Burton Foundation