Interesting side trip... Slab City and Salvation Mountain

we used to go out to the Slabs, every Thanksgiving. the DW's grandpa lived past the Slabs, on gov't land, in his trailer. total desert rat.
her family had dune buggys and ATVs and rode over the holiday and then had T-day dinner under tents.
had to drive through the Slabs to get to the canal, that led to his compound. her dad and uncle poured a concrete swimming pool for him.

Billed as one of the last places that freedom still exists it is home every winter to a special class of "snowbirds".

A place that Freedom still exists? They are all nothing more than a bunch of squatters, homeless druggies. And to liken them to Snowbirds? Give me a break.

What they have done to destroy this area over the years is simply disgusting. It WAS at one time a nice place to stop at and boondock.

It certainly is no longer a safe place to stay. The squatters have no electric, water or sewer. Just where do you think all that daily waste from those people is going??

IMHO I find it sad and disturbing that any RV'er would want to make an unsafe homeless drug infested area as a destination trip. :R

Fascinating photos, but, if you think about it, in many ways, it's not a whole lot different than many of our large cities here in America. Check out photos of down town San Francisco, with grafiti, human waste on the sidewalks, people sleeping in cardboard homes, etc. Like I say, not much different than many other areas of our country.

2gypsies wrote:
I agree with the above post.... it's sad to see children living in this environment. There's no future for them.

They'll probably be better adjusted than some trust fund baby that went to private school their entire life with no contact with non-caring parents.

larry cad wrote:
Fascinating photos, but, if you think about it, in many ways, it's not a whole lot different than many of our large cities here in America. Check out photos of down town San Francisco, with grafiti, human waste on the sidewalks, people sleeping in cardboard homes, etc. Like I say, not much different than many other areas of our country.

X2
That's what I was thinking too. Take a trip to the Slabs in my RV? Heck all I would have to do is drive to the south side of Chicago or Detroit to experience the same thing.

jplante4 wrote:
They'll probably be better adjusted than some trust fund baby that went to private school their entire life with no contact with non-caring parents.

And got elected.

jplante4 wrote:

2gypsies wrote:
I agree with the above post.... it's sad to see children living in this environment. There's no future for them.

They'll probably be better adjusted than some trust fund baby that went to private school their entire life with no contact with non-caring parents.

Statistics say otherwise. There is a direct correlation between socioeconomic status and crime. People who live below the poverty line are much more likely to both commit and be victims of crime. 2gypsies is correct, the children living at the Slabs have a tough road ahead and their parents aren't doing them any favors.

rockhillmanor wrote:
squatters have no electric, water or sewer. Just where do you think all that daily waste from those people is going??

They go to Niland for water and hopefully, dump. I've never seen any signs of black water dumping or smelled it.

To correct a couple of things recently posted...

I stated that it is "Billed as one of the last places that freedom still exists and is home every winter to a special class of"snowbirds". I posted this after seeing a number of large signs that said so and whether or not you agree a good many of the locals feel strongly about this representation.

I can assure you there are a number of actual, real honest to God Snowbirds residing out there some with fairly new to very new RV's. IMHO: Not everyone at the Slabs is deserving of your scorn. As I suggested in my first post, Google the area and you will find a number of articles describing Slab City, The Slabs and the Salvation Mountain as a popular Snowbirrd
area for most of the upcoming winter.

I have no idea who actually owns the land and who is responsible for the horrible condition of most of it. Not my Circus, not my Monkees...

I have no desire to return and would never spend any time snowbirding there but it was a very interesting place to visit {that I had been hearing about for years raising the curiosity factor} and am glad we took the time. I shared this experience here so that others can be made aware of what's out there and make their own call about whether or not to visit.

As always... Opinions and YMMV

:B

In East Jesus they are going in a bucket then composting it and growing their vegetables in it. Salad anyone, what could go wrong.