In 1776 when Juan Bautista de Anza explored what is now Anza Borrego State Park, he was duly impressed with its beauty and natural resources. The largest of California’s State Parks, Anza Borrego is only 3 hours from the San Gabriel Valley and holds a myriad of adventure opportunities for visitors. Hikes to palm oases, historical wagon trails, ghost mining districts, unequaled public art, scenic vistas, colorful rainbows and sunsets abound. And smack in the park’s main area is the little town of Borrego Springs with unique gift shops, a myriad of restaurants, private campgrounds and motels with pools and spas.
After exploring the park’s treasures one can stop by Pablitos Mexican Restaurant patio in town and enjoy a cactus Margarita and excellent lunch or dinner. Other restaurant choices include Italian, French, delis, patio meals at the retro Palms Hotel restaurant called The Red Ocotillo, and much more.
Borrego Springs is a small town with lots to offer. The southwest shops are excellent! Local bars are great for people watching and offer live entertainment on weekends.
There is a State campground only a mile from the town proper and other State campgrounds throughout the park. It is the only State Park in California where you can camp in primitive areas far from the crowds.
On our recent visit we enjoyed perfectly mild desert weather and magnificent star filled nights. The Visitor Center is one of the best I’ve seen and offers events and programs. We attended a lecture by astronmer Dennis Mammana.
Galleta Meadows Sculptures are on display throughout the park. It is the strangest collection of public art, a magical menagerie of free-standing life-size sculptures of prehistoric creatures that roamed the valley millions of years ago. Benefactor Dennis Avery has gifted these sculptures which sit on his private parcels and they are open to the public free of charge. In addition to camels, sloths, wild pigs, tortoises and camels, he expanded the collection to include explorer Juan Bautista de Anza as well as a section on field workers “who toiled here picking grapes prior to the historic United Farm Workers boycott in the late 1960s.”
This eagle sculpture is one of the more intricate and detailed of the lot. Note the rattlesnake and
fledgling eagles.
Arriving at Anza Borrego, Alan realized he did not bring his camera, so if the photos are sub-par, it is because he took them with his I-phone!
Our campsite in the RV park behind the Palm Canyon Resort was backed up to the wide open desert and we had access to the pool and spa nearby. At night we could listen to the coyotes howling and our view of the desert and mountains was spectacular.
Our visit coincided with Borrego Days which included a craft fair in Christmas Circle and a home-town parade. The final entry in the parade was the debut of the last of the Galleta sculptures. Deviating from the core theme, it is of a JEEP:
NEARBY IS THE HAUNTINGLY LOVELY SALTON SEA
People might argue that the Salton Sea, about 30 miles from Anza Borrego, is stale and ugly, but that is not the case. Bird life abounds on the sea’s shores and the natural features are extremely photogenic. We had seen a recent episode on Huell Howser featuring the Salton Sea mud pots and set out to find them – a successful venture:
Approaching the mudpots we could hear their gurgling sounds. Surprisingly the water is cool, not hot, so they are not boiling, just bubbling or roiling. No one else was around as we gingerly hiked to the site, a little apprehensive that we might sink through the crust and into the muddy lake bed.
Picknicking at the lake’s shore, we watched an array of birds including black necked stilts, white pelicans, gulls, egrets and herons.
We also visited the Sonny Bono Salton Sea Wildlife Refuge complex.