Where Do You Get a Drink in This Town? (Part I: Cool, Clear Water)
June 12, 2010
(Stay tuned for Part II: Brave New Brews)
Paula and Gary Evershed built the dog fountain and soaking pond by the side of the Terrace Hills Drive entrance to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail.
For years, Paula and Gary Evershed would find tired, thirsty dogs in the reflecting pond by their front porch, and just as often, dusty hikers would ask for a drink from their hose. The Eversheds lived right next to an entrance to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, and they might have tried to keep trespassers out with signs or a tall fence. Instead, they built a fountain and pond to cater to the hikers’ needs.
“In the beginning,” Gary says, “the pond was small, just a watering hole. But I’d see these big old Labs trying to get in and they’d look at me with mournful eyes.” He enlarged the pond and added steps so that now even the most arthritic dogs can cool off on a hot day. And two-legged walkers can get a squirt of their own from the drinking fountain nearby.
Paula and Gary first got the idea for a rock fountain when they visited the High Desert Museum in Arizona, but the real inspiration came from a creek that flowed over ledges in a narrow crevice on the Dugout Ranch in Southern Utah. ”I took a photo and then nailed it on the tree and asked the rock masons to recreate it.” The result is a delight to dogs and people alike.
Artesian Well Park, 800 S. 500 E. SLCPL photo.
Another Salt Lake City landmark popular with the thirsty is Artesian Well Park, on the corner of 800 South and 500 East. In pioneer days, oxen hauling granite from Little Cottonwood Canyon for the Salt Lake Temple stopped here. Today, many people swear it’s the best tasting water in town. Zach Moses, for instance, would choose nothing else to make tea for his son, Archimedes.
Olympic Legacy Fountain at Gateway Mall goes off every 30 minutes from 10 am to 9 pm in the summer. SLCPL photo.
Arguably the most popular fountain in town, however, is not for drinking but rather for playing, which hundreds of kids do every hot day at the Olympic Legacy Plaza Snowflake Fountain in the Gateway Mall along 400 West, between 200 South and South Temple. Built to celebrate the 2002 Winter Olympics, this fountain has historical roots as well for its proximity to the mouth of City Creek where the first Mormon pioneers, Orson Pratt and his scouting party, encamped on July 22, 1947, two days before Brigham Young brought the rest of the expedition into the valley. Although they didn’t know it, they were stepping in the footsteps of prehistoric Fremont people who settled the area a millenia earlier, also to be close to good drinking water. Evidence of a late Freemont-style pithouse and other structures was discovered during the construction of the downtown TRAX line and is commemorated with plaques at the Arena TRAX Station, 301 W. South Temple.
What is your favorite fountain in Salt Lake City? Tell us in the comment area before.
Learn more about the Bonneville Shoreline Trail.
Learn more about City Creek Canyon, an important water source for Salt Lake City.
Learn more about Freemont culture and the Freemont site in downtown Salt Lake.
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Entry Filed under: Dogs, Food, Historic Events, Landmarks, Parks, Sports. .
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1.
Mary Ellen | June 14, 2010 at 9:33 pm
The Eversheds did something so nice for the community when they built the fountain and dog pool. It is an oasis in the desert foothills. Thank you so much.
2.
slcpl | June 16, 2010 at 12:15 am
My dog LOVES to take a dip in dog pool after a long hike through the hills. Thank you to the Eversheds for such a sweet gift to the dogs of SLC.
3.
Scott Hansen | June 18, 2010 at 6:41 am
I run with our two Australian Shepherds, Dillon and Digger. They have a quality of joy in their lives which is exceeded by the joy they brings to our lives. Nearly every morning I run with the guys. I run for fun, for exercise and to get out in the morning. They run for the adventure, to be with me, and to sniff at every plant, fencepost or tree which had been a stopping point for other canine coadventurers. There is nothing like watching them scan the hillside for deer, a coyote, or a magpie. That is their duty. They thrive on duty. They govern our house and make certain that we have plenty of time for indulging them with a reciprocation of the love she gives us.
We always run in the foothills, and, at times, there is a paucity of water. The guys are pretty much on their own. I try to select trails which will have some refreshment but, in July and August, the choices diminish. A few streams, an occasional lake or pond, and, the fountain that some other runner may have constructed, knowing, first hand, my dilemma.
Such a fountain can be found at the mouth of Parley’s Canyon. If we go very far south on the Shoreline Trail, the return to the city finds a dual fountain, with one head for runners, and a spigot for dogs. A monument tells me that, on January 15, 1969, a couple of parents welcomed a daughter named Christine. 38 years later, too young to die, Christine Brimley left a legacy in the friends who loved her, her enthusiasm, beauty, and connection with the running community to build a fountain in her name. The boys and I pause, and think about our friend, the cancer which took her life, and nod to one another, knowing that we all leave our marks in different ways. Christine left hers on our hearts, and in our memories. . .and on the granite monument near the fountain at the mouth of Parley’s Canyon.