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Story & photos by Perry and James Mack
We made the left turn, heading east at Niland, CA and I was certain we made a wrong turn. The GPS said this was the route. Google maps said we were on the right track. But the desolate, dry desert around us was telling me a different story. We were looking for a nearby mountain, but the only ones I could see were on the distant horizon.
Our destination was Salvation Mountain. In 1985, Leonard Knight, a Korean War veteran, moved into the desert near what’s known as Slab City. Snowbirds and other campers boondock in the remains of what was once Camp Dunlop. It was a military barracks built in 1942 and dismantled in 1956, leaving only the concrete slabs on which the buildings rested. ‘Slabbers’ are the 150 or so permanent residents, driven here through poverty, staying throughout the summer heat, which can reach highs of 48°C.
For three decades Knight lived here in an old firetruck converted into an RV, and painted scriptures onto the rock with donated paint. And with the help of volunteers, he built. Using concrete, adobe and bales of hay, Salvation Mountain was slowly born.
At 10 metres tall and 45 metres wide you can hardly call it a mountain. We have garbage dumps that are larger. But the ‘mountain’ reference accurately describes the monumental effort it has taken to create this ‘thing’ that has been referred to as “visionary folk art” by folk art aficionados, and at one time a "toxic nightmare" by county officials.
His truck, covered in religious graffiti, was once dismantled and taken to a museum in Baltimore for display. His picture was the cover shot for the book "Self-Made Worlds: Visionary Folk Art Environments." The mountain and its creator are so unique that documentary films have been made about him, and he even played himself in the movie "Into the Wild," directed by Sean Penn, with a scene set at Salvation Mountain.
Knight's simple message is "God Is Love", which is painted below the cross that reaches skyward atop the mountain. Much of the paint was donated by snowbirds. He preferred acrylic. You can walk up, around, across, and into parts of the mountain, which will most likely result in some remarkable photographs.
Leonard Knight passed away on February 10, 2014. Where he once touched up the paint, faded by the sun, volunteers are now resolved to maintain his work. Salvation Mountain is now part of the cultural landscape of America.
You don’t have to be spiritual to visit this place, just curious. But standing below the cross, looking out across the arid desert flats, you can certainly enjoy a sense of peace and wonder – don’t forget to bring some paint.