The Dead Zone: Salton Sea
I like going to places and photographing areas that most wouldn't consider, the "non tourist" traps so to speak, places that will give me something interesting to photograph, learn and write about, so when I found out about Salton Sea it was added to the list.
Salton Sea is located about 2hours outside of LA, although we drove from San Diego along the Mexican border and up to it (also around 2 hours). It is America's largest inland sea, is 226 ft. below sea level and its surface area is 362 square miles. It was created over the course of 18 months when the Colorado River burst and flooded the area, but that is not what makes this place so interesting to me.
During the 1950's and 60's the area became a tourist hotspot, "a miracle in the desert", it was coined as being the new Palm Springs with beaches. Naturally real estate boomed and motels sprang up as half a million people flocked to the area per annum. Land was being traded at ridiculous prices, often without even being seen. The Beach Boys, Jerry Lee Lewis and the Marx Brothers were frequent visitors to the Northern Marina, but the bubble was to burst.
Much of Salton Sea feels apocalyptic in nature. Areas of residence, crumbling, abandoned and melting into the ground. The sea, now a murky colour that washes dead fish up on to the shores, the sand isn't sand, its fish bones and barnacles, if the heat doesn't hit you, the smell will! The stench is extraordinarily bad and there are camper vans, old sofa's clothes, TV's, piles of fridges, all smashed up beyond repair all disappearing into the hard, "bouncy" mud crust you walk on. And what caused all this? There seems to be many theories; the mixture of agricultural land run off and salt, a deadly combination of toxins that polluted the water with algae seems to be the most prudent. And then the floods came, much of the shoreline was left devastated; gas stations vanished into the sea, buildings crumbled, people and wildlife fled.
We only managed to get around an area called "Bombay Beach" (on the Eastern Shore) after 2 hours of walking round, through, between the buildings that remain, time was slipping by fast before we needed to take the 2 hour drive back to LA, Salton Sea requires a lot more time. However bad this area seems to us, people are still living here. In amongst the ruins, the unbearable heat and smell, there is a small community. While I shoot an abandoned caravan a guy watches on from his above ground "dipping/swimming pool", some gent rides his disabled motor cart down the empty, dust riddled streets, while on the beach a music video is being shot, it is a fascinating place.
I believe the South Shore was a military base, although from various sources, I now read it occupies a lot of people who want to "vanish" and live peaceful lives away from the hustle of city life: it has been dubbed "Slab City" and hosts an abundance of rather interestingly painted rocks! Happily the Northern Point looks like it is fairing much better than Bombay Beach. Wildlife and plantation is in abundance, a National Park occupies a large part with various hiking trails, beaches and RV parks-it has become an important wildlife spot for migrating birds. It has been cleaned up considerably and looks as if investment is going back into this area although there are still a few abandoned sites along the way.
If you are looking for something a little off the beaten track, aren't worried about bad smells, intense heat and abandoned buildings than this is the place for you. It's almost Route 66 in nature, slightly sad, very interesting, deserves to be rescued/preserved and is part of the great American History.
Below is a selection of shots from Bombay Beach.
Airbnb Review: The Water Tower
Here's the scene, 15 days travelling by car to some incredible sights with the last stretch heading back up Route 1 to San Francisco past and through Big Sur, a dream trip. The drive from LA to San Francisco can be done in about 13 hours (or less without stops) but really, its just that stunning that you need a few days. Every corner on the coastline of Route 1 is something to stop and gawp at, and with this in mind we broke it up into 3 days. Airbnb in this area of California is limited however we stumbled across this listing: "Water Tower Guest Room with Ocean View", clicking the link would lead us to one of the most amazing stays we have had since arriving in America.
The Water Tower sits on 4 acres of land, this land which looks out to the Sand Dunes and Ocean is owned by Laura and Ben, and on it they have created somewhat of "a little slice of heaven". Both Ben and Laura have travelled using Airbnb and loved the idea of hosting, so they set aside a piece of land, rescued a 1930's Water Tower and began building and restoring. Ben handles the building (while rapidly moving on to the next project he has thought up) and Laura the decorating, it's a combination that clearly works wonders. On the ground floor is a nook where a somewhat surprisingly and extremely comfortable bed is tucked and a small area with desk and comfy chair. Above that is another room which currently contains a bunk bed and that's it. Ok, it doesn't sound much right? Well this is where they got creative......
Outside Ben built a bathhouse (with an option of an outdoor shower if you're brave enough), there's a fire pit, an outdoor kitchen, another tower where Ben and Laura invite you to sign the walls, an outdoor cinema area with fold down murphy bed, a pond, an adult swing set and see saw again all built by Ben, oh and after watching Lord of the Rings he dug and built a wine cellar with hobbit style door! It's a unique place indeed and it's all been built using recycled products. Stairs are constructed with old tools, floors are old school chalk boards, there's number plates, outside coffee area, sign posts..... basically anything Ben and Laura has found they have used. It's an eclectic mix of visual wonder, especially for a photographer! If all that isn't enough there's 2 horses (Tickle and Red Eye), 2 dogs (Roscoe and Rio), 6 cats (Fluffy Cat will happily sit on your lap under the stars for hours), fish and an abundance of chickens to entertain you.
Laura and Ben have now been successfully booking out the place via Airbnb, they also hire out a "glamping tent" and land for tents if full up. They were incredibly kind and enthusiastic, two gentle souls proud to show off, show you around and make you feel part of their home. This was such a creative space it was hard to not be inspired by them and it so below are a set of photos to give you an idea of what awaits you should you choose to visit (and you really should): my only advice, stay more than one night, this was our only regret when leaving. We didn't stay long enough.
