Road toward Naval Test Site, Salton Sea, California.

Another view of the road. Naval Test Site, Salton Sea, California

This past week I wandered off Route 86 onto the only paved road (not in a city/town) that leads to the Salton Sea – just past the Border Control station. That morning I hiked eight miles to and from the water; I spent the rest of the time photographing what little remains (without going off-road — a sedan does not cut the grade for driving in the desert; and on top of that, there *may* be unexploded ordinances in the area!) of the old World War II Naval Test Site.  This was operated by Sandia Base (later Sandia Laboratory) as a site for test-dropping dummy and live bombs; Sandia called this site The Salton Sea Test Bed.

As I headed back toward the “86” I noticed a Border Patrol truck parked at the edge of a date-palm field. Moments later, it seemed I was being followed; it took about three or four minutes before I was pulled aside. The officer asked me what I was doing down the road. Had I slept there overnight? How long had I been there? I was never asked to open my trunk (thus my smuggled Mexicans and meth remained undetected), my car was not searched, nor was my driver’s license asked for. He did request that I return to my car, however, because i had stepped out (foolish me). Once he’d convinced himself that I was not a risk to anyone or to myself, I had a chance to ask him a few questions.  It turns out that this is a common area for illegal entry into the United States from Mexico. Below are two articles I dug up on that topic (most of my findings had to do with people being stopped at this Border Patrol point – not after or before it…) :

http://articles.latimes.com/1998/jan/31/news/mn-14074

http://www.sci.sdsu.edu/salton/NewRToxicPathtoUSA.html

And here are more photographs from the Naval Test Site:

By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea! Salt-encrusted metal at the Salton Sea, California.

Pier. Naval Test Site. Salton Sea, California

Building A-1(?). Naval Test Site. Salton Sea, California.

Naval Test Site. Salton Sea, California.

Same building as above – frontal view. Naval Test Site. Salton Sea, California.

Inside. Naval Test Site. Salton Sea, California.

Inside. Naval Test Site. Salton Sea, California.