withoutwhatifs

These places aren’t actually from any of the Mad Max movies, however, if you were see these places, you’d swear you were in the middle of a movie. So, I don’t know a whole lot about these places, but I’ll give you the run down of each, as I knew it driving in. Salvation Mountain: Place Alex and Claire went, and said we had to go. Slab City: I knew nothing about it. East Jesus: People come to this small area to create art installations. Seriously, that was all i knew about these three places. In fact driving there I thought they were all one place… but they aren’t.

Salvation Mountain

Salvation Mountain, CA. Ok, so, Basically, Salvation Mountain is a place where people have created different types of art displays and installations that are religious based. The majority of the displays involve some type of vehicle and a lot of decorations praising Jesus. I really don’t know what else to say about it… Salvation Mountain is an art installation created by Leonard Knight. The installation includes an area where he poured paint on the sand, and worked in different designs as a large display of color, design, and religion. There are a number of vehicles, cars, trucks, boats… all have been decorated. There is also a large structure that was built using, tree limbs, various pieces of wood, bails of hay,  and paint. I honestly can’t do it justice, so hopefully these pictures help. Also, Claire if you’re reading this, it looks like someone has taken your chicken.

(Side note, I had the “Aperture on the camera a little too high? Low? one or the other so the pictures taken inside are a little washed out. The colors were much brighter… My bad)

Slab City

Salvation Mountain is at the entrance to Slab City. The principle of Slab City is that “It’s the last free place on earth”, this community is largely “snowbirds” who head north during the summer, but there are a number of people who live here year round. The community is a minimalist one. There is no electricity or running water. So, picture a Mad Max movie, where people are living in what are mostly campers, but have been “adjusted” with very random items that have been brought to the area. For example, if you want a fence for your front yard (which is totally arbitrary space… it’s just desert, people take what they want for land but no one takes a lot) your fence is made of a combination of wooden pallets, old car doors, old cars, netting… whatever you have to establish an area.

“Slab City, The last free place on earth” and that’s how the people there live. As if they’re free… just making their way in a community that doesn’t want to be part of somewhere else.

East Jesus

Most people know about Salvation Mountain and Slab City, but most don’t know about, or drive into East Jesus. In order to get to East Jesus, you have to drive straight through Slab City. There, you’ll come to a T in the road. Right goes to the “Library” (no idea, we didn’t go that way) and left goes to East Jesus. On your way to East Jesus you will reach a fork in the road (a literal fork… a big white fork standing in the road), left to West Satan, or right, to East Jesus… we went right. Pulling up to the entrance, we parked the truck and Tara and I took a walk through an art installation garden. Again… I don’t know that I can do it justice, so I hope these pictures help.

Though it seemed a little bizarre and definitely like no place we’ve ever been, I’m really glad we made the trip to see these places and to experience this.

Heading out of East Jesus, we were about 20 miles north of the Mexican border. We were on to Arizona, but now before heading through some desert (and a border patrol checkpoint).