Situated in the southeastern California, the Salton Sea was once a tourist spot. But during the 1970’s the ecosystem destroyed and turned the place into a ...
Situated in the southeastern California, the Salton Sea was once a tourist spot. But during the 1970’s the ecosystem destroyed and turned the place into a ghost town.
The Salton Sea is the largest lake in the southeastern California. The lake’s surface is 71.7 m below the sea level and the deepest point of the sea is 1.5 m higher than the Death Valley (lowest point). The Salton Sea is one of the most mysterious places that is actually sandwiched between the Mexican border and Palm Springs.
This resort region became popular in the early 1960’s when it was a place completely filled with partygoers from the nearby metropolitan areas. For a time, the Salton Sea was a shelter to numerous fisherman and boaters. Today, being affected with the heavier winds, it has become a lonely and a haunted place.
A large part of the town was swamped during the floods in 1977. Every step would crack under your heavyweight, sinking your feet deep into the stinking mud. The buildings were explosively hot inside and the tattered curtains were boarded up.
The Bombay Beach in California one was an exotic resort. Visitors golfed, water skied, swam and party all night. But now the beach is abandoned wasteland. The water of the beach smells like a rotten fish. It was once filled with sunbathers now it is an apocalyptic landscape. (17.1)
The creation of the largest lake in the California was an accident. Initially, it was the place where birds and fish thrived in the Salton Sea. Developers tagged it as the ‘Salton Riviera’. Yacht, homes, schools and clubs were noticed along the Salton Sea. But disaster all loomed the place.
During the 1970’s, the ecosystem deteriorated rapidly. With no rainfall, the sea was excessive polluted with pesticides and became saltier than the Pacific Ocean. The frequent flooding passed the poisoned water near the shore. Drained oxygen in the sea killed numbers of fish and dragged their bodies onto the beach. As they decomposed through the sand and was found as a layer of shattered fish skeletons.
The hints of Salton Sea’s popularity still sound near the shores. Cracked concrete swimming pools and boarded up motels are now the sights of that remains. It is a home to nearly 250 inhabitants, who travel the barren landscape and drive 40 miles to stock up on groceries.
The one part of the Salton Sea is a shiny and new that was revamped in 2010 and opened as a community centre. The brightly colored building is a rare sight amongst the area of bones and sludge. Neighborhoods are ghost towns with graffitied walls, gutted homes and decomposing furniture’s. The streets in the area on the map end with sand and dirt. The barnacle shoreline of the sea is entirely covered with terrified fish that died gasping for breath.
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