California's Weird and Wonderful Salton Sea

Back in December of last year, I found myself gazing upon a sea in the middle of the California desert for the first time. I found myself both enamored and somewhat confused by this unique place. Today, I'd like to share some of this weird and wonderful place with you.

The Salton Sea

The area I'm referring to is an area known as the Salton Sea. Despite the name, this isn't a sea at all, but rather a shallow, landlocked, and highly saline lake located in the middle of the southern California desert. Despite not truly being a sea, it's large enough to be mistaken as one, with the lake being about 318 square miles in size!

Standing in this desert wasteland, one can't help but wonder how such a lake came to be. Well, it turns out that it isn't natural and its creation was a bit of an accident.

During the early 1900s, an irrigation canal was dug from the Colorado River to provide water to the valley for farming. One spring, flood waters managed to break through one of the canal gates, diverting part of the river's flow into the basin that now contains the Salton Sea. This diversion of water existed for two years until repairs to the canal gate had finally been completed.

The lake would have easily dried up in the early 20th century, but farmers allowed their excess irrigation water to flow into the lake.

The Booming Resort Town

During the 50s and 60s, the area around the Salton Sea was transformed into a series of booming resort towns. Hotels, vacation homes, marinas, and even nightclubs began popping up all over this region. Frank Sinatra even famously played in this area.

The Salton Sea became a very popular destination for people to practice boating, fishing, and watersports. The area was also extremely popular with birders as the area is a key stop for birds migrating from Alaska to Patagonia on what is known as the Pacific Flyway.

These were the golden years for the Salton Sea. Unfortunately, they would not last long.

The Decline of the Salton Sea

Despite the area's early success as a resort destination, this would not last. In the 1970s, scientists began issuing warnings that the Salton Sea would continue to shrink and become increasingly toxic to wildlife. As if this warning wasn't dire enough, things would only get worse.

In the 80s, the toxic runoff from the very farms that were responsible for the lake's existence caused widespread outbreaks of diseases that decimated the wildlife populations. Vast swaths of the avian and fish populations began to die off, littering the shores with their remains. Throughout all of this, the salinity of the lake continued to rise, exacerbating the problem.

By the late 1990s, the lake had continued to shrink. As it did so, it exposed more of the lakebed. As it would turn out, this newly exposed dirt was riddled with toxic dust that would be spread throughout the nearby communities every time the wind blew.

Needless to say, the Salton Sea did not maintain its reputation as a popular recreation destination throughout all of this.

The Salton Sea Today

These days, the Salton Sea still exists. Despite still being a rather impressively-sized body of water, especially in the middle of the desert, it is a shell of its former self. With the lake continuing to shrink every year, it's uncertain just how long California's inland "sea" will remain.

The once bustling resort towns that surround the sea are now a strange wasteland—a combination of abandoned, decaying buildings and eccentric art installations. Few still call this area home, though there are still residents in the towns.

While nowhere near its former glory, the Salton Sea has seen the tiniest of resurgences in recent years. The strange, eccentric nature of the area has made it a semi-popular destination for photographers and the just downright curious.

Should you find yourself in the area, I think it's definitely worth your time to pay the Salton Sea a visit!