How is the weaather and life near Salton Sea (Indio: hotels, homes)

[Cali68l79]

Saw some home prices in the 45-100K. Is it hell on earth? Weather underground shows 110 average Jun-Sept. What is there to do there?
Any advice helpful.

[antialphabet]

Originally Posted by Cali68l79

Saw some home prices in the 45-100K. Is it hell on earth? Weather underground shows 110 average Jun-Sept. What is there to do there?
Any advice helpful.

Yes it is hell on earth.

Why do you think homes are being offered at 45k?

It's literally a wasteland. The Salton Sea is an environmental disaster, with a stench you won't believe.
Some people live there, but many are the remnants of people who bought property there back when it was a resort, some are kind of delusional thinking the day will come again when Salton Sea is clean and will become the booming resort it once was. Some live there because they want to be away from society.

I think they have a supermarket out there now..I always see two really old restaurants that seem to be open when I've gone through there on the freeway..

But Salton Sea is an isolated wasteland, that I only recommend to move to if you want to isolate yourself from the world, and can stand the horrid stench there.

[Cali68l79]

Thanks for the info. Why does it stink? Was there a ecological disaster there or is it the high salt concentration issue. please explain. We were planning on going there to jet ski just to check it out when I came upon the reality sites. Never was serious about moving there.

[antialphabet]

Originally Posted by Cali68l79

Thanks for the info. Why does it stink? Was there a ecological disaster there or is it the high salt concentration issue. please explain. We were planning on going there to jet ski just to check it out when I came upon the reality sites. Never was serious about moving there.

It has seriously high salt levels(thousands of dead fish wash up on the shore).

I'm not 100 percent on this, but I'm pretty sure it has to do with runoff from the surrounding agricultural areas.
A lot of polluted water being dumped into the sea.

I think it stinks because of the water itself, but also the dead fish that wash up. Not 100 percent on that either.

I do know it's a well known bird watching area. I guess the stench doesn't stop people coming all the way from Japan to bird watch there.
And recently, they had some kind of boat race there, which is pretty groundbreaking.
It's insane to me...I couldn't imagine falling in that thing..

[IloveOC]

After this post I did a search about Salton Sea and Salton City. I haven't been there for years but it is very sad to see what little remains - its like a ghost town. When we were kids - back in the late '50's and early '60's we used to go there to water ski. One time we went it was extremely hot and there were many dead fish floating. We thought it was just the temperature of the water because it was so hot. It was 110 or 120 degree's out of the water. I remember that in the '70's (I think) my dad bought some land out by Bullhead, or somewhere by the river and started building an A-frame cabin. But people kept vandalizing it and stealing the materials everytime he went back to work on it. I wonder now if they had a hard time selling that property. I have tried to find pictures of the area back when it was a fun place to go. But most photo's I found online are newer ones showing the empty pools and boarded up hotels. If anyone knows of any photo's of the good times there - please let me know.

[antialphabet]

Originally Posted by IloveOC

After this post I did a search about Salton Sea and Salton City. I haven't been there for years but it is very sad to see what little remains - its like a ghost town. When we were kids - back in the late '50's and early '60's we used to go there to water ski. One time we went it was extremely hot and there were many dead fish floating. We thought it was just the temperature of the water because it was so hot. It was 110 or 120 degree's out of the water. I remember that in the '70's (I think) my dad bought some land out by Bullhead, or somewhere by the river and started building an A-frame cabin. But people kept vandalizing it and stealing the materials everytime he went back to work on it. I wonder now if they had a hard time selling that property. I have tried to find pictures of the area back when it was a fun place to go. But most photo's I found online are newer ones showing the empty pools and boarded up hotels. If anyone knows of any photo's of the good times there - please let me know.

I might be completely mistaken...but I think I remember a restaurant south of there in a tiny town called Westmorland...Town Pump, with pictures and autographs of famous western stars of that era. Supposedly people who had visited the resort.
Apparently, it used to be a popular destination among some stars(particularly stars of western movies).

Everythings fuzzy about that place, but I remember my father telling me something like that.

[Twinkle Toes]

Westmoreland is out by Brawley and it's a farming community.

[azurewarrior]

Originally Posted by Cali68l79

Is it hell on earth? Weather underground shows 110 average Jun-Sept.
Any advice helpful.

They are right about the weather. Also, if you haven't heard yet, it just got hit by several earthquakes. There are still tremors going on there, now (3/28/09).

azur

[happ]

The Salton Sea needs help & Bono has been trying to get federal money to clean it up. The farmers around Indio\ Mecca & in the Imperial Valley drain their water into the Sea. Of-course the Salton Sea was a result of the Colorado river jumping its banks early last century but an isolated body of water in the middle of an intensely hot desert won't stay fresh long. I remember fishing there once as a kid. Once I drove down to the Sea from Julian on a summer day when up in the mountains it was around 80F but within an hour we were -227 below sea level. We got out of the car with cameras only to be met with 116F temp that could have cracked the camera lens & a hoard of flies got into the car. It stunk horribly

I hope Salton Sea can be restored but the farmers will need to cooperate.