Created purely by accident, California's Salton Sea is the largest lake by volume in the state.
In the early 1900s a heavy rain caused the Colorado River to overwhelm the banks of an irrigation canal. This resulted in millions of gallons of water flooding into a previously dried up lake bed in a Californian desert.
At first this seemed like a blessing and quickly became a popular tourist attraction in the 50s and 60s. Yacht clubs sprang up and attracted celebs like The Beach Boys and Jerry Lewis, who kept their boats at the marina.
This blessing was short lived.
Just as fast as the sea appeared and gained popularity, it wet down hill and became a stinky curse. Thousands of dead fish washed ashore, plants began to die and rot, even some birds couldn't survive the ecological nightmare.
This sea is surrounded by acres upon acres of agriculture, including cattle and fields of crops. The pesticides from these fields would drain into the sea and kill its inhabitants.
It wasn't long until the overwhelming smell caused all those who once enjoyed this 'miracle in the desert' to abandon it and all they had built.
So.. Back to our visit...
Not only did the name 'Salton Sea' peak my interest, but knowing that it is the largest lake, an accident, once was a great vacation spot, and now is desolate with virtually nothing being able to survive there, only made it that much more interesting. I was intrigued and wanted to visit since we were staying only a few miles away.
Before driving out we were told that this was no place to go, that it wasn't anywhere you'd want to take your family. My curiosity pushed that advice to the side and I had to see it for myself. The advice, however, was spot on.
We were in town for my husband, Brandon's, work and whenever we travel with him we always look for nearby things to do. I didn't do much research on the Salton Sea's current state before loading the kids up and going to visit it. If I had I would have known to wear better shoes and carry water.
Our first stop was the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. We thought we could see the sea from the lookout here but found only a few walking trails and quail instead. We weren't prepared to hit the trails; flip-flops and no water in the 114 degree desert just don't mix.
We decided to look at the visitor center but it was closed until November, our visit was in September. We found that out after getting there. Apparently, it's closed from May-October and open November-April, which it's easy to understand why.
After realizing we couldn't see any water from the refuge, we got back in the car to visit another location that hopefully had a better view. We followed a path that probably shouldn't have been taken in a Nissan rental car, but we made it, haha.
The path was smooth in some parts but in others it was filled with large rocks, some of which looked like obsidian. We also seen graffitied concrete slabs and random shoes on the drive out. After driving for what seemed to be a few miles we were able to see the water, but between us and the water were more rocks. The car would have never made it down to the shore so we decided to park and walk down.
Immediately upon getting out of the car we were hit in the face with the worst smell. It smelt like death, rotting fish maybe? We began to walk towards the water and the closer we got the more our feet began to sink.
Our daughter walked to the edge of the shore where little birds were walking in the water, but she quickly turned around and came back to where we were. She said she couldn't take the smell.
The sun was setting so we didn't stay but a few minutes before walking back to the car.
While walking back I happened to take a closer look at what we were walking on. The ground was covered in millions of barnacles, shell pieces, and bones from fish and other animals.
While it was a beautiful and unique experience, it is not somewhere I'd care to visit again. I am glad that we went and got to briefly experience it as a family though.