The Mud Volcanoes at the Salton Sea are an interesting geological phenomena. They are created by water, gas and mud pushed to the surface through geothermal activity below the earth’s crust. It is now thought that this activity is related to the San Andreas Fault which terminates near Bombay Beach in the Salton Sea Basin.

The area where the volcanoes formed at the Salton Sea is relatively small, but contains quite a few cone formations as well as many mud pots of bubbling mud and water. Depending on the conditions, sometimes you can see the mud shooting up through the cones adding to the base of the current volcanoes and creating new ones. It’s an interesting place to see if you are ever in the Salton Sea area.

Update - September 2011: Traveled back to Salton Sea area to see the mud volcanoes again. I was surprised to find that a new geothermal power plant had been constructed directly behind the area where the mud volcanoes are located. Added some additional photos with the new power plant in the background.