Dead fish and bird remains along the shore of the Salton Sea, California.

The Salton Sea can be very beautiful, I tried to convey that in my last two posts.  In addition to its beauty, it is a wonderful place for birds.  Not only is it a critical stop on the Pacific Flyway bird migration route, but it also is home to over 400 species of birds, a number only exceeded by one other place in the U.S. (the Gulf Coast in Texas).  Many of the bird species that use the Salton Sea are threatened on endangered.

But, the lake is plagued with problems.  Since it is below sea level, there isn’t an outlet.  As salty water flows in and evaporates, only the salt is left behind, which is slowly raising the salinity level.  That coupled with diseases and other problems has lead to some large die-offs of birds and fish, the remnants of which were visible along the shoreline when we visited.  There are no easy solutions to the situation, most are expensive and controversial.  Here is a website that goes into far more  detail on the Salton Sea for those who maybe interested.

This is my first post with version 2.7 of Word-press – I have my fingers crossed, so far so good!

Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, California.

This is from the east shore looking west at sunset – it was a wonderful sky!  For comparison, – in yesterday’s post, I was on the west shore looking east at sunset, one night earlier.

Salton Sea, California.

These pelican seemed like they were glowing against the pink water thanks to the reflection of this wonderful sunset.

Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area, California.

Where we stay in Anza Borrego State Park, only street legal vehicles are allowed, and those are limited to existing trails and road.  In the nearby Ocotillo Wells, things are very different.  In Ocotillo Wells you can drive any vehicle, anywhere, at any time.

We took a look at it last week and couldn’t believe the crowds the area attracts over a holiday weekend.  RV towns had cropped up everywhere, this was only one of dozens if not hundreds.  And it was far from the largest, it was just the easiest to photograph thanks to the high view point.

Indian Wells Golf Resort, Indian Wells, California.

Unfortunately, both mornings we spent in the Palm Springs area were cold, so the rich green grass was turned white in many areas thanks to frost.  Between the frost on the grass, and the snow in the mountains, I don’t think this is the image this area is trying to convey – that might not make these images very marketable, but what can you do.

La Quinta Golf Resort, near Palm Springs, California.

We spent a couple of nights in the Palm Springs area photographing and celebrating our anniversary.  (Note to reader;  if this is Janine, place the emphasis on anniversary, if your are with the IRS, emphasis on photography 🙂  )

I have learned the hard way that resorts like La Quinta are hard to photograph because they are surrounded by security personnel who seem to only be on the look-out for photographers.  Don’t they have criminals and stuff to worry about? 

Well the one way around this is to stay at the place, and thanks to name your price on Price-line, and the slow economy, that is now very possible.  A room on a Saturday night of a holiday weekend during the winter would have been unheard of last year even at the motel 6 – this year that is all we paid, well except for the mandatory resort fee that covers a bunch of stuff that should have been included anyways.

Well, Happy New Year everyone!