the salton sea

The Salton Sea is a large saltwater lake that sits atop the San Andreas fault. It's in the vicinity of Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park, so I decided to drive the little lady over on Thursday afternoon to have a look around. A big storm had just finished, which made for great photos.





The area around the Salton Sea consists of farmland and virtual ghost towns. Once upon a time, the Salton Sea was apparently a resort area. It's fallen on hard times in recent decades, and most people have moved away. The shore was mostly deserted; every nearby building was run down, and every establishment had gone out of business. Kind of depressing.





The Salton Sea is saltier than the Pacific Ocean or the Great Salt Lake. The salt is killing off the fish, and scientists believe that only one species will be left in the near future. In any case, there were dead fish all over the shore, which added to the eerie vibe.



A rainbow appeared just north of the lake while I was walking around the shore.





Somebody parked this old Chevy pickup near the shore--a perfect addition to the scene.











I wanted to go back to Joshua Tree when we were done with the Salton Sea, but it was getting late in the afternoon and there was no direct route from the Salton Sea, so after driving around for 30 minutes looking for one, I gave up. I did stop to take a few more photos, though.