An abstract artistic sculpture called Metaphor: The Tree of Utah stands of the edge of I-80 on the barren Bonneville Salt Flats west of Salt Lake City. Swedish artist Karl Momen created the 87-foot high tree between 1982-1986. He financed the project himself to bring bold color and beauty to the stark, flat, salty landscape. The sculpture is made of 225 tons of cement, almost 2,000 ceramic tiles and five tons of welding rod, and tons of minerals and rocks native to Utah. Also called the "Tree of Life," the sculpture is located on the north side of I-80 about 95 miles west of Salt Lake City (25 miles east of Wendover). The location is interesting because the harsh environment here hindered many travelers in pioneer times. Members of the ill-fated Donner Party were tragically delayed in this area before their awful demise in the Sierra Nevada mountains. During WWII, the crew of the Enola Gay practiced bombing runs over the Great Salt Lake Desert before proceeding to Hiroshima to end the war. After he completed his sculpture, Karl Momen donated it to the people of Utah and returned to Sweden. He didn't explain his work of art - he leaves the interpretation up to you. So, what does it mean? You decide.
You can read more about "Metaphor" here - http://www.treeofutah.com/5-2/
To receive credit for the find, please answer the following questions.
1: How many posts are holding up the fence around the structure?
2: How many tiles have fallen off of EACH side of the second biggest ball and what color are the tiles?
3: *OPTIONAL* Post a picture of your experience at the 'Tree of Utah' in the Bonneville Salt Flats, but be careful not to include the answers.
We truly believe that we received this Virtual Reward because of the wonderful folks that have given us favorite points on our caches, so we would like to thank everyone that helped earn us this Virtual! We hope you enjoy this stop on an otherwise monotonous drive.
Congrats to PiTime for the FTF!!!
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.