Salton Sea, California

 

This is the view that's just outside the park I'm staying at.  If you look closely at the lower peak just above the line of clouds, you can see little bits of white - that's snow from all the rain yesterday.  At least lower elevations didn't get that!

 

Today I visited the Salton Sea and a couple of the small neighborhoods that have been built near the Sea.  Unfortunately, the Sea, as well as the neighborhoods, have deteriorated during the years.  The Sea was created in the early 1900s by canals dug from the Colorado River and has since been polluted by all the agricultural runoff.  The Sea is quite large, about 15 miles across and about 35 miles long, but is shallow. 

 

 

The water level has dropped quite a bit, the photo below shows a boat ramp, which is obviously no longer used.

 

There were a few boats in the area, but obviously none have been used in quite a while.

 

I imagine there are no zoning laws because some of the lots had homes, some just had trailers like the one shown below - some of these residences were abandoned, but some were still being used.  One lot was fenced in and had four trailers crammed in it, all inhabited.

 

A small motel and an RV park were actually in good condition, but a couple of the restaurants have long been out of business.

 

 

Four homes on one street were partially built, but there was no evidence that any progress would be made on these in the near future. 

 

 

There is still a vast amount of land available, but I doubt that any more will be sold in the area, although there were some very nice-looking homes mixed in with the abandoned ones.  Some homes had been burned down, with the rubble still left on the lot.  I have a feeling this area will be a future ghost town.  It was sad to see the decline of these neighborhoods because the Sea has been so polluted and is in such a state of decline.