Location profile: Anza Borrego State Park

Text and photos by Heather Cline 

Agave, Anza Borrego State Park

Anza Borrego is California's largest state park, protecting 600,000 acres and containing a wide variety of features from badlands, slot canyons, and palm oases. I've highlighted some of my favorite park features below. 

Wildflowers

Thousands of people visit Anza-Borrego Desert State Park each year to see the desert wildflowers in bloom. There are hundreds of flowering species, and four basic groups of flowering plants: Agaves & Yuccas, Bushes, Cacti, and Wildflowers. Some of the most common types of wildflowers you will see are California evening primrose and Desert sand verbena. 

Sun, rain, temperature, and wind all influence the wildflower season and the season can fluctuate from year to year, but March is a reliable time to see flowers. If conditions are perfect, you will see a super bloom with the desert carpeted in flowers. But even when there isn't a super bloom, there are still wildflowers to be seen. 

Going for a hike is one of the best ways to see the flowers. Some good hikes for flowers include Cactus Loop Trail, Hellhole Canyon, and Borrego Palm Canyon. 

Desert Evening Primrose, Anza Borrego State Park

Badlands

The Borrego Badlands seem to go on forever. They extend northward from Highway 78 to the Santa Rosa Mountains. 

There are many places you can view the badlands if you have a 4 wheel drive vehicle or want to hike. 

Font's Point, which is located 5 miles from County Road S-22 through a wash is very popular location to watch the sunrise or sunset over the badlands. It is a good idea to check the road/wash conditions at the visitor center before heading out. 

Font's Point sunrise, Anza Borrego State Park

Slot Canyons

There are surely many unnamed slot canyons nestled throughout the Anza Borrego badlands. There are two that I have hiked and can provide details on. 

The first and most popular is simply called, "The Slot". This trail can be hiked as a 2.3 mile loop and is rated as moderate. It has become very popular in recent years and the park now charges $10 to park and will close off parking access when it gets too full so hiking on a weekday or early on weekends is recommended. As with most slots, it is noticeably cooler in the canyon on warm days. 

The second slot canyon does not have a formal name that I am aware of, but it is easily accessed while hiking the Calcite Mine trail. If you mark your miles, it is about 1.4 miles from the stat of Calcite Mine trail. From the main trail (aka: Jeep trail/road), I hiked both left and right. The left canyon has more pronounced sots but the right side had some pretty canyon walls and some wildflowers too. 

Calcite Slot Canyon, Anza Borrego State Park

Cacti

I should title this one Cacti, Yucca, and Agave. There are plenty of these to be seen in and around Anza Borrego and are a photographers dream. The area on Borrego Springs road, about 2 miles south of Christmas Tree Circle (roundabout) in Borrego Springs is known as the Ocotillo Forest and is a good place to see all of these. 

Ocotillo cactus, Anza Borrego State Park

Pumpkin Patch

The Pumpkin Patch is technically outside the park boundaries, in the Ocotillo Wells Vehicle Recreational area but it's worth mentioning because of it's unique feature: concretions, which are formed over time when loose, wet sand cements itself to a larger object underground. As the water evaporates, the sand hardens around the object. Wind erosion exposes the concretions and gives them their rounded (pumpkin like) shape. 

There are three known routes to the Pumpkin Patch. I have driven one of these, which I believe is not the easiest or the hardest - right in the middle! For more information on that route, check out my post here: Behind the shot: The Pumpkin Patch

The easiest route, which I will check out on my next visit is from Highway 78 at the Ocotillo Wells Vehicle Recreational area. Travel Highway 78 for 8 miles, then turn Left on Pole Line Road. Follow Pole Line Road to Tule Wash. Make sure to keep your eyes peeled. The signage around here is small. Turn left onto Tule Wash and go straight for ~5-6 miles. You will see the Pumpkin Patch on the left-hand side.

Pumpkin Patch, Ocotillo Wells Vehicle Recreational Area

Sculptures

The sculptures are also not within the boundaries of the park but are so close by and worth visiting. They are located throughout the Galleta Meadows Estate. The owner, Dennis Avery commissioned artist Ricardo Brecceda to create over 100 large metal sculptures on his property. He generously allows people to visit the sculptures for free. There are a combination of wildlife, historical, and mythological sculptures throughout Borrego Springs. The sculptures are too far apart of walk to all of them, but I have seen a number of groups biking around to the various sculptures.

Based on the number of cars parked on the side of the road, I suspect the Serpent is the most popular. 

Cactus sculpture at sunrise, Anza Borrego State Park

Wildlife

Anza Borrego is home to bighorn sheep, mountain lions, coyotes, bobcats, badgers, Antelope squirrels, Cottontail rabbits - and lots of birds - let's not forget the birds!

I have found the Borrego Palm Canyon and Montezuma Valley Road good places to spot the Peninsular Bighorn Sheep. 

The Anza Borrego State Park Visitor Center is a great place to see a variety of birds as a well as a cactus garden. 

Peninsular Bighorn Sheep, Anza Borrego State Park

Clark Dry Lake

Clark Dry Lake is a large dry lake off County Road S-22 about 7 miles from Borrego Springs. To access it, take a left on Rockhouse Road from S-22 and travel ~2 miles on the dirt/gravel road. This road is accessible by most vehicles and I typically see several RV and travel trailers boondocking off the road. 

This is a neat place to get images of the cracked mud that occupies the lake bottom. In heavy rain years, the dry lake will become a shallow lake. 

Clark Dry Lake, Anza Borrego State Park

Night skies

Borrego Springs is an International Dark Sky Community, which means it is an ideal location for star gazers and photographers alike. There is nothing quite like looking up and clearly seeing the Milky Way in the sky or being able to capture star trails. One of my favorite photographic subjects are the sculptures I referenced above. 

Bighorn Sheep Sculpture and star trails, Anza Borrego State Park

I hope this overview of Anza Borrego has given you some additional information about the park, all it has to offer, and inspires you to get out and enjoy this California gem. For a full gallery of images from Anza Borrego, check out my gallery here.