The Salton Sea and Anza-Borrego SP

Jan 29th

We moved a little further south today. Our new spot is in Salton City, right on the shores of the Salton Sea. This isn’t the most scenic spot, but we are meeting up with a Canadian family here tomorrow. The site we are at, is an abandoned RV park that is now free to stay at. You can even drive through it and park on the beach. There were already about 20 campers here when we arrived, and after some inquiry, we found out that there is going to be a paramotoring meet up here on the beach. Paramotoring is strapping a big propeller to your back and using it to propel a parachute. The campers on the beach, had all set up in rows, leaving spaces to use as runways. We stayed back at the abandoned RV park, to be out of their way, and because the Salton Sea stinks. We walked down to the beach and Mia discovered that all of the sand was covered in small bones. When the Salton Sea turned toxic, up to 7 million fish died every day, leaving the shores covered with bones. In the afternoon, the wind died down and all of the paramotors took to the air. They were flying around everywhere. There didn’t seem to be any organization on how or where they flew, and I was sure they would crash into each other.

Jan 30th

When the sun came up the paramotors were all buzzing around the sky above us again. It sounds like a bunch of leaf blowers going by. The Canadians showed up after lunch, and Mia and their daughter became best friends immediately. More paramotorists showed up today.

Jan 31st

There were even more “leaf blowers” this morning. Some of the flyers are psychotic. We have seen them perform loops and death spirals, pulling up just before they hit the ground. Another family with kids came over today and Mia was in heaven. More paramotorists showed up today, and the beach is starting to get full. We counted over 20 paramotors in the sky this evening.

Feb 1st

This morning, we took the Canadian family up to Painted Canyon, and hiked the trail again. They loved it just as much as we did. We were planning to leave today because there is a wind event starting tomorrow, but we got back pretty late from the hike. The wind isn’t supposed to start until after 9am tomorrow, so we will get up early to leave.

Feb 2nd

The wind started at 1 am, and by 4am we were getting extreme gusts. By 5am we were packed up and ready to go. The Canadians were too. There was dust covering everything inside our trailer and the air smelled like cat litter. I can only image what the toxic dirt from the Salton Sea is doing to our lungs. We have picked a new site in the Anza-Borrego State Forest, which is sheltered from the wind. On our drive out of the Salton Sea area, we hit a dust storm, and visibility was very bad. The wind was blowing so hard, that it kept push the stairs of our camper out. We had to pull over several times and put them back. Once we turned West and made it over the first ridge, the wind died down. We stopped in Borrego Springs to get groceries. It’s a very nice little town surrounded by the Anza-Borrego State Park, and there was no wind. Scattered throughout the town are large metal sculptures of horses, dragons, eagles and more. We walked around town to look at them. We met the Canadians in Blair Valley, a dispersed camping area in the State Park. It is very beautiful, with amazing rock formations and all kinds of cactus. We have climbed in altitude, so the temperatures are a little cooler. While we were sitting outside, we were constantly being buzzed by bees. They were attracted by our water. We made the brilliant decision to place a small saucer with water about 20 yards from our site. Within 15 minutes, we were overwhelmed by bees. We had to set up our bug tent just to be outside. As the temperature dropped the bees disappeared.

Feb 3rd

After school in the morning, we drove the truck the end of the dirt road (which required 4-wheel-drive), to where the trail head is located. We hiked the Pictograph Trail, which as the title says had a rock with Native American pictographs on it. It also ended at the top of a dry waterfall with spectacular views of the valley. The hike was only a few miles, but the rock formations and cactus were beautiful. On our drive back to camp, we passed a coyote eating on the side of the road. It didn’t run when we pulled up next to it. It just continued to eat. I’m starting to think that I do have a spirit animal, and it’s a coyote.