Come join me on a journey to Salvation Mountain. You will be awe struck by the beauty in this form of visionary art and dedication to God which one man has created. Located just east of Niland near Slab City in California. I first learn about this place thru a travel magazine article. So last winter while down in the desert near Salton Sea we decided to go visit .
The following words were taken from the creator of Salvation Mountain Leonard Knight's Blog site. http://www.myspace.com/leonardknight
Although I was never religious, one day I spontaneously started repeating "Jesus, I'm a sinner, please come into my heart." From that day forward, I made it my life's mission to bring "The Sinner's Prayer" to the world.
I eventually setup camp at the entrance of Slab City, an abandoned military base filled with squatters, located just outside of Niland. It was there that I started to construct Salvation Mountain, a giant 3-story monument to Jesus out of paint, old tires, and assorted junk. The first attempt at building my mountain was also unsuccessful, as after 4 years of construction, it suddenly collapsed.
Undeterred, I prayed to God and developed a new method of construction through the use of adobe - a mixture of mud and hay which proved to be a much lighter and flexible building material.
However, my faith would be tested again, when the county threatened to bulldoze the mountain due to claims that the paint was polluting the ground water. Independent tests were conducted and it was soon proven that it was in fact not a "toxic nightmare." Outcry from the local community soon convinced the county to leave me alone.
After 19 years of trial and error, I am still building my creation, which has attracted worldwide attention. I have been featured in numerous newspapers, magazines, and television programs.
The following words taken from Wikipidea
Mr. Knight claims to have refused substantial donations of money and labor from supporters who wished to modify his message of universal love to favor or disfavor particular groups. Salvation Mountain is the second most visited tourist attraction in Imperial County.
Knight lives full-time at the site in a small cabin mounted on the rear of a 1930s-vintage Chevrolet two-ton truck. Like Salvation Mountain, Knight's Salvation Truck and a collection of other vehicles and machinery are entirely covered with paint and Biblical quotes as well.
He estimates that more than 100,000 gallons of paint have gone into the creation of the mountain and that every California-based paint manufacturer has donated paint to the project. Friendly and accessible, Knight welcomes visitors to Slab City and Salvation Mountain and gladly accepts donations of both labor and acrylic paint.
Photos below were taken at near by Slab City where a lot of squatters and snowbirds live. There is a lot of artistic work to be found here amid the residents.
I found this video at Youtube of a tour with Leonard Knight of Salvation Mountain. It really gives a good visual of the man and the mountain. Do check it out.
Here are a couple more sites if you want more imformation on Salvation Mountain. Plus if you google it there is tons of other sites and articles.
Hope you enjoyed your visit to Salvation Mountain and getting to know Leonard Knight.
So to all of you
Good Morning… Good Afternoon… Good Night …
Whatever it is to you.......
Photos by
Here I Am/Carrie
