La Salina, Isla Carmen
We spent four relaxing days anchored in Bahia Salinas at the old town site of La Salina. Sal means salt in Spanish. The salt harvesting operations started there in 1717 and it didn’t stop until 1982 when the company suddenly closed and evicted all the people. Once a town of 200 people and at various times the largest salt harvesting operation in the world — La Salina turned into a ghost town overnight. Now there is only one national park caretaker who lives on site watching over the ruins.
There is more than a square mile of salt evaporation ponds that were flooded, with a serious of dikes, by hand and shovel. The water was evaporated in the Baja sun and then the salt collected, again by hand and shovel. Some of the ponds have returned to desert, but the largest remains.
The small church has been restored, not sure by who. A hunting outfitter has restored one on the largest structures, Casa Grande, into a hunting lodge for a half dozen or so guests. For a short season each year the park issues a few permits to hunt Big Horn Sheep on Isla Carmen. I image the hunters pay A LOT for that privilege.
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