The Sun Tunnels: Performing the Solstice

- Lake Level: 4198.4′ -
- 344 Miles Round-Trip -

One week ago today, a small town appeared in the desert just south of the Lucin Oasis.

The people came from all over the world.  A contingency from France, a group of land art aficionados from California, and a rag tag bunch of strangers from the Wasatch Front all gathered to wait – milling around and kicking up dust from the desert floor. In all, there were about 50 people.

8:00 (1 hour and ten minutes before sunset) – Sarah, Charles and I arrived after driving across the salt flats and north from Wendover on 40 miles of dirt road.  The gathering probably saw us coming from miles away.

I immediately felt at home in this small town.  People were sharing stories, food and travel plans.  They talked about the weather and their children.  We happened to park next to Wayne, who would become the de facto mayor of this temporary town due to the sheer number of times he has been there for the summer solstice. Wayne informed us that when the moment came, we would only have three minutes to take our pictures, and that we would have to work together to make sure everybody got their fair share of time.

At the infamous Sun Tunnels in the Great Salt Lake Desert, a crowd gathered for the thrill of three minutes.

Three minutes between when everything lines up, and the sun goes down.

Nancy Holt, wife of Spiral Jetty artist Robert Smithson, completed the Sun Tunnels in 1976 – 4 concrete tubes 18 feet long and nine feet in diameter aligned to the sun at its most extreme points in the sky.  The tunnels look like they might have been destined to be buried under a city street, carrying water to and fro.  Instead, we found them arranged in an “X” on the desert floor in the middle of nowhere, bone dry, waiting for their designated times.

8:15 (55 minutes before sunset) – I walked into one tunnel to have a look around.   It looked like a few daredevils had tried their hand at dirtbiking the circumfrence.  Tire tracks and a few etched names surrounded an arrangement of holes drilled in the shape of a constellation.

Holt paid tribute to a different constellation with each tunnel – Draco, Perseus, Columba and Capricorn.  Holt, in an article she cowrote for a magazine, said the tunnels and their constellations are “an inversion of the sky/ground relationship-bringing the sky down to the earth.”

8:30 (40 minutes before sunset) - While Charles snapped photos of the pre-solstice tunnels, Sarah and I ran into a pair of intrepid travelers that had driven from the Spiral Jetty that morning on a whim.  Zile and Steve apparently looked at the map and thought that while they were out there they might as well stop by.  5 hours later, they hungrily ate some of our crackers and bananas and laughed with us as they alternately celebrated and lamented their decision to drive across the desert to this spot.

“The ranger at Golden Spike said we could pick up some supplies in Lucin,” said Steve, and we laughed as he pointed to the patch of trees a few miles north of us that used to be a railroad outpost many years before.

8:45 (25 minutes before sunset) – Sarah napped in one of the camp chairs we brought while I helped Charles make his way through a heap of cameras belonging to some of the 25 people standing in one long line through the two tunnels that would line up with the sunset.

They stood still and quiet for nearly ten minutes.

A crowd gathers at the east end of the Sun Tunnels © Charles Uibel

8:55 (15 minutes before sunset) – A crowd began to form at the east end of the tunnels as the sun dipped behind the top of the easternmost tunnel.  The oblong shadow filled in the middle with the light of the sun and began to creep slowly toward us.  Some people rushed into it, kneeling and snapping photos of the blinding sun within the concrete circle.

The anticipation was palpable.

I ran over to a group of people that had set up their chairs in the middle of the X and informed them that they were in everyone’s pictures, and they finally moved away.  Two women hula hooped in the tunnels, lining up circles with circles.

9:05 (5 minutes before sunset) – Wayne told us the history and gave the crowd their instructions: “You will only have three minutes for everyone to get their pictures.  And if you stand in the tunnels right at that time, the sun will make a halo around your head.  It’s the picture of a lifetime.  Who’s going to take mine?”

Two women from California stood behind me and talked between themselves about how this space, a seemingly solid work, morphed into a live performance on this day.  The crowd, gathered in anticipation of the show, oohed and aahed as the light of the sun danced off the curves of the tunnels.  The shadows grew closer together, and dust from cars racing to catch the solstice alignment hovered on the horizon like smoke.

It did seem like stagecraft – a scripted dance, capturing the drama of the sun, moon and stars in their perpetual motion across the universe.

9:07 (3 minutes before sunset)

Alignment.

The crowd tentatively took turns standing in the tunnels.  No fights or lines or competition for space – simply a quiet celebration.  Sarah and I raced hand in hand into the tunnel and Charles captured us in a solstice kiss.  The women and their hula hoops reappeared, along with kids, dogs, and people standing in a moment that, despite its twice-yearly regularity, seemed so very seminal.

9:10 (sunset) – After a few more rounds of pictures, the crowd began to disperse.  As quickly as it appeared, the town faded away.  Some stayed, playing with lights and fire, camping, eating and making music.

Sarah and I stargazing in the Sun Tunnels © Charles Uibel

11:30 (2 hours and 20 minutes after sunset) – We stayed on until the light of the sun was completely gone, and the stars took over.  Charles painted pictures in 30-second long exposures on his camera, with LED hula hoops, Frisbees, and a headlamp.  Besides the incredibly bright stars, it was worth it to stay so late for a picture like this*.

3:00 AM (5 hours and 50 minutes after sunset) – We arrived back in Salt Lake, dusty and sleepy and quite content with ourselves.  I have never celebrated the solstice in such a meaningful and ceremonial way, and I will do it again.

Next time, I will be at least an overnight resident of the little temporary town just south of the Lucin Oasis.

Visit: The Sun Tunnels are located at 41°18’12″N   113°51’49″W.   They are open to the public.  From Salt Lake City, drive west on I-80 to first Wendover exit.  Head north from exit toward Bonneville Speedway, but instead of turning right to Speedway, continue driving north.  Road will wind up into mountains past a UDOT building – bear left at peak, then continue on this road (it will soon become dirt) for 40 miles (watch your odometer).  At 40 miles, you should see the Tunnels to the East.  Turn right on the first road that looks well traveled, then turn right again when you can, and you’re there.  (Double check my directions at http://ludb.clui.org/ex/i/UT3126/)

* See more of Charles Uibel’s incredible photos from Summer Solstice at the Sun Tunnels at http://galleries.greatsaltlakephotos.com/-/frontpage/great-salt-lake-utah/2011-06-21-sun-tunnels.