NationMaster - Encyclopedia: El Mirage Dry Lake

El Mirage Dry Lake is a dry lake bed in the Mojave Desert of California in the United States. The lake is located about nine miles northwest of the town of Adelanto, in San Bernardino County. Download high resolution version (925x623, 101 KB)Summer Storm over the Mojave Desert at El Mirage Dry Lake. ... Download high resolution version (925x623, 101 KB)Summer Storm over the Mojave Desert at El Mirage Dry Lake. ... Looking across from Emigrant Pass towards the Kingston Range in the eastern Mojave. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area Ranked 3rd - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 kmÂ²) - Width 250 miles (400 km) - Length 770 miles (1,240 km) - % water 4. ... Adelanto is a city located in San Bernardino County, California about 9 miles northwest of Victorville. ... San Bernardino County is the largest county in the United States by area, containing more land than 9 states. ...

The dry lake is approximately six miles long and is about 10 miles north of Highway 18. El Mirage Dry Lake is part of the El Mirage OHV Recreation Area. It is also known to be an extremely popular filming location for automobile commercials.

For 50 years the lakebed has been used by the Southern California Timing Association for timed speed runs. The club also runs the Bonneville Salt Flats speed runs.

In the movie "Lethal Weapon" (1987), a famous scene in which officer Murtaugh (Danny Glover) tries to get his kidnapped daughter back, is entirely filmed at El Mirage. In addition to being an attractive filming location, the unique flat terrain allowed the pilot of a Bell 206 Jetranger helicopter to perform a very difficult sideway landing at very low altitude and very high airspeed. Lethal Weapon is the first of a series of American movies that were released in 1987, 1989, 1992, and 1998, all starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover as a mismatched pair of Los Angeles police officers. ... Daniel Lebern Glover (b. ... The Bell Helicopter Model 206 JetRanger is a two-bladed main rotor, turbine powered helicopter with a conventional, two-bladed tail rotor. ...

Shania Twain's music video for "That Don't Impress Me Much" was filmed at El Mirage. Shania Twain, OC (born August 28, 1965, Windsor, Ontario) is a very successful singer and songwriter in the country and pop music genres. ... That Dont Impress Me Much is a song by Canadian singer Shania Twain. ...

References

California Road & Recreation Atlas, 2005, pg. 104

Categories: California geography stubs | Lakes of California | Lakes of the Mojave Desert

Results from FactBites:

Outdoor Recreation: El Mirage, California BLM OHV Area - DesertUSA (924 words)
	El Mirage is an area administered by the Bureau of Land Management with cooperation from the state of California Parks and Recreation and a number of southern California counties.
	The focus at El Mirage is recreational and off-highway vehicle use as well as varied activities on the El Mirage Dry Lake.
	The basin between the lake bed and the Shadow Mountains is a creosote brush-covered area crossed by deep dry washes.

El Mirage Dry Lake OHV Area (919 words)
	Access: The El Mirage OHV riding area is located west of Adelanto, California, between US Highway 395 and the Los Angeles County line.
	El Mirage's unique flat lakebed is a destination for many visitors.
	Comments: The El Mirage Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Area is located in the Mojave Desert on the western edge of San Bernardino County near the Los Angeles County Line.

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