Salton Sea - The Ruins of Bombay Beach

Welcome to my amazing visit to the Salton Sea!  You're joining my first day in progress and you've missed quite a lot!  

To catch up on the amazing sights around the Salton Sea area, click here to go to see a bunch of adorable Burrowing Owls and the Sonny Bono Wildlife Refuge, and here to visit some fascinating mud volcanoes and MORE Burrowing Owls, and here to visit artistic Salvation Mountain and Slab City. 

And now, having checked out of my motel in Calipatria, I headed north on Highway 111 to visit the ruins of Bombay Beach, in what would turn out to be my last stop of the day.  To be honest, I was expecting more.  I may have been in the wrong place; I mean, I know I was at Bombay Beach, but I didn't really see televisions in the sand, etc.

Granted, I was hot.  Very hot.  So I drove down the main road until it came to an end, at which point I climbed some stairs to the beach and started walking.  A long, hot walk.  

The Salton Sea is located in the Coachella Valley in what was formerly known as the Salton Sink.  Irrigation from the Colorado River flooded in the early 1900s and created this lake.  It makes for a barren and bizarre, but strangely beautiful place surrounded by mountains.  

The Salton Sea has become a valuable resource for hundreds of species of migrating birds, but it is rapidly shrinking due to the drought and the fact that it really doesn't have natural water sources to refill it. 

I was lucky enough to see many American White Pelicans still here.  They are mesmerizing to watch as they float above the water in an undulating line playing follow the leader.

Those bumps on their beaks signify that it's getting close to breeding time.  

Another mesmerizing sight were the long freight trains rolling down the track that parallels Highway 111.

I walked along the shore expecting a very bad smell, but it really wasn't that bad.  Yes, there were dried fish carcasses all over the place, but it didn't smell like decomposition.  Even though it was hot.

They looked quite cool in a weird way. 

There was more life around besides the pelicans.  I saw quite a few Black-necked Stilts, some other small cute brown shorebirds, and of course Gulls.  This Stilt was doing Hot Yoga.

I walked all the way over to where I could have actually driven too, had I followed any sort of directions.  But then I would have missed all the fabulous sights!  Downside is that maybe just a bit further would have been where there was furniture in the sand, but I was just. too. hot.

Besides, I think these photos that I got are for more interesting than trash left behind, right?

I mean, obviously I did find some ruins.  Here you can see both "old Bombay Beach" and "New" Bombay Beach in the background. 

There is this really cool line of pilings, I guess maybe what used to be a jetty of some sort.  Anyway, it's about 100 feet or more from the water at this point but I did find a fish nearby to "pose" for a picture. 

The next picture is not mind. I found it on a Google image search for Bombay Beach Salton Sea.  But I thought it was really interesting as it shows the same structure, but with water lapping right up to it. 

In my post about the mud volcanoes and Red Hill Marina, I have the same sort of photo comparison from Red Hill Marina.  The before picture I found for that is from 2005, so basically 10 years ago before the drought really hit.  So much of the lake has evaporated since then. 

I walked back along the top of the levy to get to my car and I could look out over "new" Bombay Beach, which honestly doesn't look in much better shape than the ruins on the beach. 

You can see the houses that still have people living in them, but it seems almost like the closer you get to the Sea, the more abandoned houses and ruins there are.  Which is somewhat strange. 

I like graffiti and abandoned places though, so it was all interesting to me.  Just hot. 

I'll leave you with this beautiful Desert Sunflower that I found near a really pretty area off the highway.  I actually turned around to go to this magical oasis that was filled with green bushes and bright pink and red flowers, but after driving through sand and almost getting my car stuck, I was scared off by the no trespassing signs that were put about every 10 feet as you got close.  *sigh*

Maybe next time. ;-)

Now, it really was time for me to head off on my long drive to Barstow.  I had now been off-schedule so much that I knew the likelihood of me making the 4:30 BLM Insta-Meet up at Amboy Crater was pretty small.  

But I've never let missing out stop me!  =D

xoxo

Nikon D3300

Tacoma Washington - Point Defiance Aquarium & Olive Garden. Huh?

Happy Saturday!  The rain has stopped (for now) and there is lots of good sports this weekend.  Sharks hockey tonight and Cowboys playoff football for the first time in FOR. EV. ER! tomorrow.  

So I thought I would spend this foggy morning on my blog.  Our last stop at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium was the amazing aquarium.  To see my fabulous family and equally fabulous animals and flowers at Point Defiance, click HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

 And now we go...beyond the deep.

These starfish are hugging.  There is so much love in this room right now!!  

Next time you each that shrimp scampi, think about this picture.  haha!

The octopus was just hanging around at the top of the tank so I could only see one - very impressive - part of him.   

Shark!  In front of a shipwreck which I thought was pretty cool to have in the tank. 

 So much color and vibrancy under the sea!  I love all these purples and pinks. 

Sea dollars!  And some really cool soft pink, glowing fern-thingies.  

Marine biologist I am definitely not. 

 Jellies!  These are sooooo amazing!

Unfortunately we found out the hard way that the aquarium and zoo were closing early for a wedding.  Which is immensely cool!  But some advance notice to people could plan their day better would be GREAT customer service!  So we didn't get to see everything in to aquarium, including the stingray cove and marine discovery center.  So I guess I'll have to go back in the future!

But I did get to see a beautiful display of grandmotherly love with my sister IL Verna and her grandson Logan. 

Washington is really one of the most beautiful states in the USA. 

What an amazing place!  But after all that walking and Pokemon hunting, we were all hungry!  We decided to head to Olive Garden for a great family meal.  I have to say, the food and service that we had at the nearby Olive Garden was the best I've ever experienced at an Olive Garden and also many other places.  Kudos to the staff who were truly wonderful! A great time was had by all!

I love my family!

xoxo

Nikon D3300

Birthday Butterflies, Toads, & Jelly at California Academy of Sciences San Francisco 3/16

Turning the big 5-0 is not something I have dreaded or had any sort of mid-life crisis about.  I mean...I do feel hella old now.  Which is completely new to me since I've never felt old before, but I'm going to blame that more on what a rough year this one has been and the health problems I've had rather than just...you know...being old.

But just as turning 50 wasn't really something to fear, I really didn't want to exactly CELEBRATE it either!  I'm sure you know what I mean.  lol  So when my daughter and sister asked what I was planning for my birthday, I said that I would love to go to San Francisco while Adrienne was home on Spring Break.  I wanted to visit a museum and/or do something outdoors (of course).

We settled on the amazing California Academy of Sciences which fits both bills.  Adrienne and I had never been, but Rose had so she acted as our tour guide.  First thing we saw walking in the entry is a gigantic T-Rex skeleton.

I was so excited to get to the Rainforest, but there were many cool things to see on the way.  A fan favorite at every aquarium caught our attention and we made out way to a clear pool filled with rays and sharks.

If you're into amphibians, CalAcademy is the place for you!

They have various terrariums and aquariums set up here and there so there is always something fascinating and beautiful to see.

After oooing and aaahing at the various species, we finally entered the Rainforest.  The difference in atmosphere is felt immediately.  The air is much hotter and very humid of course.  You really get the sense of being under a rainforest canopy as you enter at ground level.  Your senses are alight with visions of butterflies, songs of birds, and the smell of plants and water.

Much to my disappointment, it was hard to get a clear picture of the birds flitting in the trees.

The beautiful bromeliads were another story, making brilliant splashes of color against a background of green.

As did the gorgeous and varied butterflies!

Looking down from the pathways of the rainforest, you can see into the aquarium below with it's wild-looking creatures.

Look out for butterflies!!

Once you reach the top of the rainforest, there are more terrariums with cool creatures.

When you're ready to depart, you must check yourself carefully for any hitchhiking butterflies and then board the elevator which stops only at the bottom.  The mirrored walls assist you with further checks for wannabe escapees; once you're all clear, you exit the room and step right into the  underwater beauty of the deep ocean.

There you tour the California coast and all it's creatures.  Of course there is a wonderful hands-on tidepool exhibit where I couldn't resist spending some time learning about the amazing creatures.

And of course, there are jellyfish.  I love jellies.  This is the beautiful Man O' War.

And I believe these are Moon jellyfish.

I stood and watched this tank for quite awhile.  It's so soothing. I could seriously spend all day watching these.

We made our way back upstairs (with a brief stop to look at the top of the lagoons)

And a stop in the Naturalist Center where Adrienne and I had a wonderful chat with a curator about nature birds and Rose made a paper butterfly. 

Then we hit the living rooftop.  This is the DeYoung Museum which sits just across the street. 

Then, it was time for out last stop of the day... The African Hall to watch their colony of African Penguins at feeding time.  They are adorable and amazing. 

All in all, it was a wonderful and education time spent with family.  I would highly recommend this museum and will definitely be returning there in the future!

xoxo

Nikon D3000