West-northwestern to northwestern view from Salton Sea Beach, California. Desert Shores and part of the Santa Rosa Mountains are in this view. In this photo, Desert Shores may seem to be on the opposite shore due to the rather complex contour of the shoreline and the sheer size of the lake, but it actually is on the same (northwestern) side and is the next town up from Salton Sea Beach. The road below the mountains is California State Route 86. The surface of the beach is covered by shells and fish bones/cartilages; see Salton Sea (Jan_2014) 02.JPG. Most of the birds in this shot are California Gulls ("Larus californicus"), but at least one Great Egret ("Ardea alba") and one Great Blue Heron ("Ardea herodias") can also be seen if you zoom in.