On Saturday and Sunday, May 17th and 18th, 2014, my girlfriend, Karen, and I went on a weekend excursion to the Salton Sea in California’s Imperial Valley.
If you're unfamiliar with the Salton Sea (as most people are), you might want to start your journey here:
This was a pretty significant trip for a few reasons. It's the first time that somebody has come along with me for one of these adventure-expeditions; so, it's the very first time that my travels haven't been a "strictly single, solitary pursuit".
Secondly, it wasn't your typical "vacation destination", by any stretch of the imagination.
Third, it was also the very first time that the camper and I have gone to sunny California together.
And lastly, it was the first camping trip that I went on, where I didn't actually sleep in the camper. But, more on that in a bit...
As I noted above, The Salton Sea is not your typical “vacation destination”. Far from it, actually. The Salton Sea is basically an accident, the result of mankind’s relentless drive to tame Mother Nature. An experiment that as we all know (but, don’t always remember), doesn’t always go mankind’s way. And when the experiment fails, it can be quite destructive. This is the crux of the Salton Sea experience...
The sea itself is the result of a Colorado River irrigation canal breach that occurred in 1905, and completely submerged the Salton Sink. Once the sea had been formed by Colorado River water, it was envisioned that the sea might make a great “tourist destination”, complete with beachfront development and housing. It was touted, at the time, as the “Riviera of the West”, and several communities were developed to meet the anticipated need for waterfront vistas and marinas- which included the seaside towns of Bombay Beach, Salton City, Salton Sea Beach, and Desert Shores.
The Salton Sea is essentially a closed ecosystem. It’s sustained solely by irrigation runoff; there are very few, small rivers that feed the Salton Sea. And the few rivers that do flow into the Salton Sink originate in Mexico, where they’re clouded by raw, untreated sewage. This means that the water running into the Salton Sea is extremely saline, and rich in nutrients. The sea also evaporates around 6 feet of water, annually. It's the combination of these factors, that are leading to the ultimate demise of the Salton Sea.
As time goes on, the water continues to get even “saltier”. Currently, it’s more saline than the Pacific Ocean… and the salt content rises every year, as the lake continues to evaporate off more water (I say “lake” because, technically speaking, the Salton Sea is in fact, a lake… not, a sea).
The signs of disaster began in the late 1950’s. First came the algae blooms, which robbed the sea of oxygen. These were closely followed by the massive fish die-offs; even today, fish by the scores die every year, as the water temperature increases in the summer months, which litter the shores of the Salton Sea with carcasses and bones of tens of thousands, if not millions, of Tilapia (which are the only fish that can survive in the sea’s extremely saline environment). With the fish die-offs came flies and maggots, which bred and carried botulism, which in turn led to the deaths of scores of migratory birds. The Salton Sea even flooded it's beaches a few times during the El Ninos of the late 1980's and early 1990's, which completely engulfed and submerged entire beachside neighborhoods. In the shadow of all of these disasters, the land speculators, the wealthy investors, and the retirees all decided (well, “mostly decided”) that the Salton Sea was no longer the safest or smartest of investments; land buyers and developers bailed in droves, leaving towns filled with newly paved streets, hundreds of street signs, gaudily painted billboards, and brand-spanking-new sewer and electrical infrastructure… but, with hardly a home (or, a resident) in sight. All left to bake, melt, rot, and decay in the harsh desert environment...
These days, the Salton Sea is a place that aging hippies, disaffected youth, meth addicts, snowbirds, conspiracy theorists, off-the-grid extremists, and social misfits all call “home”, along with a handful of hardy and infinitely hopeful retirees that are still praying for a “Save The Sea” movement from local, state, and national governments that [might someday] lead to a renaissance land boom, a resurgence in the local economy, and a heaven-sent salvation for their investments.
How did I “discover” this place, you ask…? Well, my first exposure to it was through (of all things) a skateboard video, titled “Fruit Of The Vine”, that documented pool-skating missions to obscure, unknown, and generally inaccessible pools- the Salton Sea resorts being among them. A few years later, I was “re-introduced” to the Salton Sea via Jon Krakauer’s book (and, the subsequent movie adaptation of), “Into The Wild”- aka, the Christopher McCandless story, which featured “Slab City” in Niland as one of the settings for Chris’ adventures.
So… the last question might be, why in the good grace of God would I (or, anyone else, for that matter) choose this place as my fun-loving, weekend camping destination…?! If that’s the case, my answer might be, “why not…?!” First of all, it looked like a real adventure. The people seemed like they might end up being at least “pretty interesting”, if not downright entertaining. And, the photo opportunities looked like they might be pretty darned outstanding. Karen and I are both amateur photographers… so, photo-ops are always pluses in our books. And lastly, it’d be a chance to learn, and do, something completely new, unique, and different.
In all of these things, we were entirely correct. And then some. It was, at the end of the day, a wonderful, beautiful, exciting, fun, and enjoyable trip. I’m so glad we went. Because I wouldn’t trade the experiences we lived, the people we met, the knowledge and understanding we gained, and the lessons we learned, for the whole wide world.
And, yes…I’d even go again.
Below, follows a quick blow-by-blow narrative of our trip, accompanied by some of the better photos that I shot along the way. Enjoy…!
Downtown Quartzsite, Arizona. 10:15am, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
We packed up the camper, and left at around 5 am from Laveen, Arizona (where Karen lives), and took the I-10 west through Quartzite, Arizona, where we stopped to do some "trinket shopping" before crossing the state line at Ehrenberg, into Blythe, California...
The camper parked in downtown Quartzsite, Arizona. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Our next stop was at Chiriaco Summit, California, where we got gas, had lunch at a cute little coffee shop, bought postcards (the first of many), and visited the George Patton Museum, where we got to see a couple dozen well-preserved tanks, patiently standing guard in the harsh desert sun...
Chiriaco Summit Coffee Shop, Chiriaco Summit, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
General Patton Memorial Museum, Chiriaco Summit, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
This one takes a little bit of explaining. This is a hand-cut relief map of the entire southwest, commissioned by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California... i.e., the agency that planned out the Colorado River Aquaduct way back in the 1930's. It's a marvel of analog mapping; you have to truly see it to believe it. General Patton Memorial Museum, Chiriaco Summit, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The Sherman Tank, one of the greatest engineering blunders of World War II. General Patton Memorial Museum, Chiriaco Summit, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
General Patton Memorial Museum, Chiriaco Summit, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
We got off of the I-10 at Exit 168, and turned south on Box Canyon Road toward Mecca. The rock cuts along this road showed obvious signs of geological activity, as the sedimentary rock was clearly buckled, distorted, and deformed from millennia of earthquakes and tectonic plate movements...
Box Canyon Road, between I-10 exit 168 and Mecca, CA. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Driving into Mecca was quite a sight to behold. In front of us, spread across the Imperial Valley, were miles of date trees, vineyards, and lemon trees, glistening in the bright sunlight. It looked like a true desert mirage- an oasis of indescribable luster and beauty. But when we turned south toward the North Shore Marina, the scenery immediately began to crumble into a landscape of blight and abandonment...
The dream is still alive, and it's still for sale. Near the North Shore Yacht Club, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The North Shore Yacht Club was a perfect example of the irrational chain of senselessness that seems to perpetually define this area. On one hand, the Yacht Club building has been painstakingly restored to it's '50s-era, Albert-Frey-envisioned grandeur; it truly is, stunningly gorgeous. On the other hand: it currently sits empty, closed, and locked. It's a beautiful, empty shell that seems to serve no useful purpose whatsoever. And, it's still surrounded on all sides by unrestored and failing architecture, rotting piers, the carcasses of millions of dead tilapia, and billions of barnacle shells. Yet, the Yacht Club remains standing, shimmering among the blight...
The view from The North Shore Yacht Club, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The North Shore Yacht Club, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The North Shore Yacht Club Marina, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The North Shore Yacht Club, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The next stop was the Salton Sea State Park, on the Salton Sea's eastern shore. Here, I could access the beach, and the "white sands" that are actually ground-up Tilapia skeletons and barnacle shells. "Eerie" doesn't even begin to describe the strange sensation of walking on a literal sand of skeletons...
Barnacles and Bones, Salton Sea State Park, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The most striking part of our trip, was seeing the artwork that springs out of desperation, boredom, loneliness, and hopelessness. Bombay Beach was the first "dilapidated community" that we came across... it would be the first of many... yet, hidden in the shadows of loss and destruction, were snippets of unrestrained culture and beauty, painted on (and in)the discarded shells of formerly thriving businesses and proud vacation properties...
Bombay Beach, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Bombay Beach, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Bombay Beach, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Bombay Beach, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Bombay Beach, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Everywhere we went... from Bombay Beach, all the way to Salton Sea Beach... we saw firsthand the devastating effects of the '80s-era El-Nino-induced flooding, evidenced by the high-water marks on the buildings, the acres of dried seaweed (and other organic matter) left on the flat basins, and the salts leaching out of the foundations...
Niland Marina, Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The Camper at Niland Marina, Saturday, May 17th, 2014. Note that it's parked on a flat basin of dried-out sea sludge, left to bake in the wake of the El Nino flooding.
The next stop was Slab City and Salvation Mountain, which sit immediately adjacent to each other just east of Niland, California, on the site that was formerly Camp Dunlap, a World War II-era artillery training camp for the U.S. Marine Corps. Again, it's a juxtaposition of strange and extreme paradoxes: a military barracks uprooted, and turned into a squatter's haven. A place commandeered for the perpetuating of the military mechanisms, subsequently abandoned, and ultimately turned into a place where creativity, intellectualism, peace, nudity, and alternative living abound in an unrestrained anarchy...
Salvation Mountain, Niland, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The inner structure of Salvation Mountain, Niland, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
A tourist marveling at the inner structure of Salvation Mountain, Niland, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
Salvation Mountain, Niland, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
We spent Saturday night at "The Range", the venue for the Saturday Night Talent Show at Slab City. Karen and I cooked dinner on the portable grill, while passers by marveled at the camper's solitary simplicity, and it's overall attractiveness and functionality. We, in turn, got to meet some extremely kind, interesting, and entertaining people, while getting to tour their own impromptu camping arrangements. It was truly inspiring...
"The Range", the Main Stage at Slab City (formerly Camp Dunlap), Niland, California. Saturday, May 17th, 2014.
The only thing that we didn't do on our camping trip, was actually camp. The temperatures were so hot... well over 100 degrees during the daytime high... that the camper bedding was still warm to the touch, even well after sundown. This presented a potentially hazardous situation; the nights here are hot enough as it is, without sleeping on baking bedding. So for safety's sake, we ultimately retreated to the air-conditioned comfort of the Brawley Inn, about 20 miles south of Slab City...
Brawley Inn, Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
The next day's drive up the western shore of the Salton Sea, was generally more of the same: a grand tour of the blight and the squalor, with glimpses of creative genius hidden in the shadows of pseudo-urban decay...
You might be looking at this, saying to yourself, "Oh, my! Look at the pretty colors! What is that...!?" It's algae-infested lake water; you definitely do not want to swim in this. Salton City, California, Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton City Marina, Salton City, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
"Money Makes The World Go Around..." Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach Marina, Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach Marina, Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Salton Sea Beach Marina, Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
The Sunken Forest, Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Sunken City, Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Brawley Avenue, Salton Sea Beach, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Desert Shores, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Our last stop of the trip, before starting for home, was to "return, and acclimate to civilization" in Indio, California, where we checked the local interweb for highly recommended, local eateries. That's where we discovered (and subsequently, thoroughly enjoyed) an awesome little burger chain called "Andy's Burgers". The portions, and the flavors, here are just ginormous- definitely, a must-stop-and-eat, if you're ever in the neighborhood...
Andy's Burgers, Indio, California. Sunday, May 18th, 2014.
Even though this wasn't a "real camping" trip, per se, we did get to meet some fellow wanderers, share some camping stories, and have a very real adventure. At the end of the day, that's all that really matters. As such, I thought that it was still a story worth documenting, and sharing with my fellow readers, adventurers, and travelers...
I wonder where we'll go next...?
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The Current Stats:
Miles traveled, previous: 6607.3 (or so)
Miles traveled, this trip: 606
Miles traveled, total: 7213.3 (or so)
Average mpg: Still holding steady around 25-26. Not too shabby...!
Modifications:
- Three queen-size pillows, and two body pillows, contributed by Karen. It makes the sleeping in it a bit more comfortable for two people.
- Two folding easy chairs- again, contributed by Karen to the cause.
- And, I also bought a 3' strap at Home Depot to help secure the roof a little bit. But more on that later...
