California - Salton Sea near Palm Springs

Anyone fish or rent a boat at the Salton Sea near Palm Springs?

I don't think you can, and more importantly, you might not want to. The lake itself is pretty unpleasant. It's worthwhile to visit though & the scenery is nice.

There are no marinas as far as I know, & very vew real 'sport' fish could survive in such a toxic lake. It is more well known for birds (pelicans), insects and microscopic shrimp & krill. Unfortunately, since 1996, thousands of there birds have died of avian botulism in the area.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by brm744:
There are no marinas as far as I know..
</font>

on my motorcycle trip in Feb of 2002, I only cruised the NE portion of the sea and each marina I saw was deserted.

All the fresh water fish are of course dead, but some ocean fish like Orange Covina were introduced and were thriving as of the fishing reports that I read. But all the reports were dated 98, 99 & 00. Maybe now the lake is even too saline for them.

Oh well, there is more than enough to do in the area, I was just curious. But I will check out in a few weeks and report back if fishing/boat rental still occurs on the sea.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by brm744:
It's worthwhile to visit though & the scenery is nice.</font>

I agree. After driving through the death valley and seeing nothing but desert. Seeing the Salton Sea, which is the largest US lake west of the Rockies, was quite beautiful.

[This message has been edited by Sweet Willie (edited 02-04-2003).]

There is fishing on the Salton Sea!

Excerpts of an article by Ron Ballanti from Salt Water Sportsman on the Salton Sea. http://www.saltwatersportsman.com/saltwater/fishing/article/0,12746,386839,00.html/

The history of the Salton Sea is as strange and interesting as its corvina fishery. It was created in 1905, when an agricultural-engineering accident caused most of the Colorado River to flow into the Salton Basin for more than a year. Over the years, naturally occurring minerals in the soil converted this body of water into a salt water lake with depths of more than 50 feet. During the first and second World Wars, a thriving commercial mullet fishery existed in the Salton Sea, due in part to the fear of Nazi U-boats prowling the coast. In the 1950s, several species of salt water game fish were introduced, including halibut, grunion, gulf croaker, sargo, several strains of corvina and even roosterfish. Orangemouth corvina, along with croaker and sargo, have thrived in this rugged environment. Tilapia, a hardy African cichlid that made its way to the Salton through irrigation channels in the ’60s, is the most numerous fish, and serves as an abundant source of forage for the ravenous corvina population.

In the ’50s and ’60s, the Salton Sea became a popular tourist attraction, supporting yacht clubs and marinas that catered to water-skiers, sailors and fishermen. For a time it even enjoyed a reputation as a hot spot for movie stars and other celebrities. Today, the shoreline is dotted with the sandblasted remains of this bygone era, and mainly plays host to hundreds of thousands of migratory birds and a few hardy souls in search of big fish.

The Salton Sea has long been a center of misunderstanding and controversy. From time to time, questions have arisen about the cleanliness of the water and the health of its fish. This bad reputation has been fueled by its odd-colored, nutrient-rich waters, occasional fish die-offs and well-publicized bird casualties from naturally occurring bacteria.

Although the Sea gets its water from the agricultural run-off of surrounding valleys, testing has shown the water to have low levels of pesticides and contaminants. “The Salton Sea is rated as a Class II waterway, suitable for swimming and full recreational body contact. I believe it’s cleaner than Mission Bay,” says local guide Jim Penn. For the record, the California Department of Fish & Game recommends limiting consumption of Salton fish to four ounces every two weeks. Penn says this safety advisory is due to elevated selenium levels in the Sea’s mud bottom.

The biggest threat to the health of the Sea comes from salt. Even at its current annual inflow rate of 1.3 million acre feet of new water, the salinity level keeps rising. With water evaporating at roughly the same rate as it enters — and no outflow to flush out the salt — eventually the salinity levels will climb until the resident fish can no longer reproduce. This demise may be hastened if Assembly Bill 1564 passes, a measure that would take 300,000 acre feet of water normally slated for the Salton Sea and divert it to San Diego for municipal use.
United Anglers of Southern California (UASC) is one of several organizations fighting to preserve the Sea. Naturalists, environmentalists, fishermen and waterfowl hunters have joined together to preserve this unique biological area and one-of-a-kind fishery. For more information, contact UASC at (714) 840-0227.

The Salton Sea is located about 150 miles southeast of Los Angeles. It can be reached via Interstate Highway 10 from Los Angeles and Highway 78 from the San Diego area.

Marinas

Bombay Beach Marina
(760) 354-4049
Launch ramp, boat wash, camping, store

Red Hill Marina
(760) 348-2310
Launch ramp, boat wash, store

Desert Shores Trailer Park
(760) 395-5280
Launch ramp, boat wash, store

Johnson’s Landing
(760) 394-4755
Launch ramp, boat wash, cafe

HOTELs

Ray & Carol’s Motel
(760) 394-0062
(Near Johnson’s Landing)

Calipatria Inn & Suites
(760) 348-7348
(Near Red Hill Marina)

For camping information contact Salton Sea State Recreation Area, (760) 393-3052

FISHING GUIDES

Jim Penn
(619) 561-0043
http://www.pennsguideservice.netfirms.com

Ray Garnett
(760) 395-5883

LIMITS
5 orangemouth corvina per person minimum length, 18"

a good read about the history of Salton Sea can be found at:
http://www.sci.sdsu.edu/salton/PeriscopeSaltonSea.html

If any other FT'er is out in Palm Springs/Salton Sea area on Jan 24th, 2004. I am planning to charter a boat to do some fishing. It is not pricey at all yet to have someone to split the cost with would be nice.

email me.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Sweet Willie:
If any other FT'er is out in Palm Springs/Salton Sea area on Jan 24th, 2004. I am planning to charter a boat to do some fishing. It is not pricey at all yet to have someone to split the cost with would be nice.

email me.</font>

bump....

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Visit FlyerTalk Dining http://flyertalk.com/diningfr.shtml
“I did absolutely nothing and it was everything I thought it could be.”

Spoke with a long time, now ex fishing guide a week back. He stated they had not caught a worthwhile fish in the Salton Sea for almost a year now. Most believe the ecosystem has finally collapsed thanks to more water being diverted so the saline level increased too much.

It is a beautiful body of water, shame.

Spoke with a long time, now ex fishing guide a week back. He stated they had not caught a worthwhile fish in the Salton Sea for almost a year now. Most believe the ecosystem has finally collapsed thanks to more water being diverted so the saline level increased too much.

It is a beautiful body of water, shame.
I tried again on the trip we just took. Same thing, no fishing. :(

video on Salton Sea area: http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-us&vid=e70e233c-ea3d-49ec-8561-89c25fb6b99b&playlist=videoByTag:tag:viral:ns:Gallery:mk:us:vs: 1&from=MSNHP&tab=m137&GT1=42003

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