All American canal, Indio, CA

I was out in Indio yesterday morning for my horsemanship lesson and on my way home, I crossed the All American canal.  I had my camera with me, the clouds were just right, and I had time to take some photos.  The All American canal comes from the Colorado River and traverses our desert, bringing water to the farmers and cities of the Coachella Valley.  There are plenty of signs around it warning people to stay OUT of the canal, but every year somebody falls into it and drowns.  On my way to my lesson, I saw a father and his son fishing in it.  OYE VEI!!!!  I stopped to take a photo of the algae on the sides of the canal.  This makes it nearly impossible for somebody to climb up the sides and get out!!!!  We used to have the water district lady come to our classrooms and warn the students about the dangers of the canal, but with budget cuts, she doesn't come now.  I remember her telling the class that the calm water is deceiving.  There is an undercurrent which is moving constantly because of the pumps which suck the water down, down, down into them...THAT's where people get into trouble and drown.  Beauty is deceiving, right? There are NO fences along the canal and there are a LOT of homes along it in Indio.