ADVENTURE
Reality, of course, is relative. Reality, of course, is relative. As we pedaled out of Slab City toward Bombay Beach, the reality we entered still felt pretty out there. Miles of desert wash and long trains with tagged rail cars stretched on to our right, with miles of soupy substrate and the Salton Sea to our left. Our target destination was the Ski Inn for some beer and onion rings. As we walked in, our eyes caught a sea of dollar bills—thousands, taped all over the place. The beer is good and the people are kind, but finding a place to put your dollar bill will give you a run for your money. We meandered out to the beach for sunset to see the purple
orange hues illuminate the chalky white, fish-bone-riddled shore. We grabbed snacks at the one market in Bombay Beach and then rode 15 miles in the cold dark all the way to Salton Sea State Park to set up camp. What we’ll put ourselves through for a picnic table and water … We awoke on day five and spent some of the morning down by the water, with hundreds of Bonaparte's gulls and a few beautiful American avocets. We rode back from the semiforgotten Salton Sea along flat, windy miles of road, emerging into expansive golf communities complete with
Porsches, bike/golf cart lanes, and green manicured lawns. Soon, we headed up into the San Jacinto Mountains for our final epic descent. In six days, we rode through and experienced some little-known pockets of California, meeting new characters, exploring the backcountry, having some adventure, and learning about what happens when an inland sea is accidentally created. To read more about the trip, and to see a video and additional photos, search for “Sand and Snow” on theradavist.com.
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