Anza Borrego Desert State Park & Borrego Springs Campground

Anza Borrego Desert is the largest of the California State Parks. Borrego Palm Canyon Campground is the official name of this popular palm oasis & developed campground located very close to Borrego Springs CA. Hike or bike to town. There is also a private RV Park named Palm Canyon Resort in town, just to confuse you. Desert wildflowers blooms, popular hiking & biking trails, plus mud caves & slot canyons draw plenty visitors here, mostly in the winter months. Summer high temps exceed 90 degrees for months at a time.
There are hundreds of miles of dirt roads to explore, and one could easily spend every weekend for a full year, checking out all there is to see in this vast desert, where elevations range from near sea level to 5000′ peaks.

Borrego Desert Campgrounds

• Borrego Palm Canyon Campground
• Culp Valley Campsite
• Fish Creek Campground
• Leapin Lizard RV Ranch
• Palm Canyon RV Resort
• Tamarisk Grove
• Truckhaven Hills OHV
• Yaqui Pass Campsite

Let us also remind you that this is the best place to camp in SoCal for primitive car camping (camping outside of a developed campground). Super secluded, darkest skies, free and always located on the back roads. 4×4 is not required in all areas, so there are plenty options. Blair Valley or Coyote Canyon Gardens are popular camp spots. For more info on free camping click here.

Topo maps, wilderness hiking maps -

• Anza Borrego Desert Map (Tom Harrison)
• Cleveland National Forest Map (USDA NFS)
• PCT Map – Pacific Crest Trail / SoCal
• San Diego Backcountry Map (Tom Harrison)

nearby cities & towns:

• Bombay Beach CA
• Borrego Springs CA
• El Centro CA
• Julian CA
• Mount Laguna
• Ramona CA
• Salton Sea CA

Anza Borrego Flowers / Borrego Springs CA

East San Diego County, Borrego Springs CA

San Diego Backcountry
600,000 acres of SoCal desert

BLOOM: March thru May
Anza Park elevations range from low to high. Lowest near eastern border of park (next to the Salton Sea) to the upper reaches of the western slopes @ 4000′ of the Laguna mountains. Lower elevations sprout up first; Higher elevations bloom later (along County Rd S-2) Drive from Warner Springs to Salton Sea = Back Road Highway # S22 is a great route to take thru the park – for the full gamut in vegetation & altitude.

anza wildflowers include – Arizona Lupine, Barrel cacti, Brittlebush, California Primrose, Cheesebush, Creosote, Desert Chicory, Desert Apricot, Desert Hibiscus, Desert Lavender, Desert Pincushion, Fiesta Flower, Fishhook Cactus, Gold-Poppy, Ghost Flowers, Ground Cherry, Fagonia, Prickly Pear, Monkey Flower, Ocotillo, Rigid Fiddleneck, Rock Daisy, Sahara Mustard, Sand Verbena, Short-Wing Deerweed, Spanish Needles, Spectacle Pod, Trailing Windmills, Turpentine Broom, Whispering Bells, Wishbone Bush

Anza Borrego Camping: Palm Canyon and RV Resorts

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2012 CaliforniaWildflower Reports

(check back here, around early March)

local links:

Anza Borrego Desert
Anza Borrego Desert State Park
Anza-Borrego National History Association
Borrego Campfire Restrictions
Desert USA Reports
Hellhole Canyon Hike
Palm Canyon Hike
Pictograph Trail
Total Escape Adventures Campouts

nearby towns:

• BOMBAY BEACH
• BORREGO SPRINGS, CA
• JULIAN, CA
• MT LAGUNA
• PALOMAR MTN
• RAMONA, CA
• SALTON SEA
• WARNER SPRINGS

Highway 78 cuts right thru the middle of the largest State Park in the lower 48. Anza Borrego Desert State Park is a place that must be visited more than once to really take in all the beauty it has to offer. North-South: San Diego County Road S2 skirts the western border with Laguna Mountain towering above. It starts at Ocotillo @ Interstate 8 and heads Northwest to Lake Henshaw at Warner Springs. East-West: a major route S22, connects Montezuma Valley to the Borrego Valley, and continues East to the Salton Sea. The center of the parks is pretty much the town of Borrego Springs. County Road S3 leads from Hwy 78 down the the town of Borrego Springs Valley. developed campgrounds:

• Agua Caliente Hot Springs, S2
• Blair Valley Camping (free), S2
• Borrego Palm Canyon Campground
• Bow Willow Campground (free), S2
• Butterfield Ranch RV Park, S2
• Culp Valley Campground (free), S22
• Fish Creek Campground (free), off Hwy 78
• Ocotillo Wells OHV Camping, Hwy 78
• Stagecoach RV Park, S2
• Tamarisk Grove Campground, S3 @ 78
• Vern Whitaker Horse Camp, Borrego
• Vallecito County Park Campground, S2

free camping: While the camping facilities listed above provide picnic tables and toilets, or more luxury camping… Total Escape thinks the best part of camping in Anza Borrego Desert is the vast amount of free, open camping available on most back roads. Hundreds of dirt roads lead off in all directions, so you can find the peace and solitude that few inside busy campgrounds ever experience.

San Diego Backcountry Map

Many routes are sandy washes, dirt roads, some for high clearance vehicles only, or 4WD in several canyons. Have a good dirt road map with you and know your cars limitations. Cell phone coverage is very unlikely out here in the most remote wilderness areas.

East San Diego County, Borrego Springs CA

San Diego Backcountry
600,000 acres of SoCal desert

BLOOM: mid-March thru May
Anza Park elevations range from low to high. Lowest near eastern border (next to the Salton Sea) to the upper reaches of the western slopes @ 4000′. Wide, deep, sandy, long desert washes, native petroglphs, wind caves, slot canyons and split mountain. This uncrowded state park has the most acreages than all of the parks.

OPEN CAMPING

Camp in a developed campground, a small back country site or camp primitive on nearly any dirt road. Car camping to 4×4, this park has lots to offer folks wishing to really escape. No ground fires allowed, so bring your metal campfire bucket and large trash bag to carry out your ashes. The last thing you want is to scar these pristine white desert washes.

DESERT WILDFLOWERS

Steep rocky canyons on the Laguna mountain foothills can be challenging terrain, so bring good, sturdy hiking boots. Wildflowers can be abundant on certain years. Lower elevations sprout up first; Higher elevations along County Rd S-2 & S-22 bloom later in Spring. By June 1st most of the color is gone in and around Borrego Springs, so this is a real Winter and Spring vacation kinda spot. California desert wildflowers include primrose, barrel cactus, prickly pear, monkey flower, ocotillo & many more.

ANZA BORREGO WILDFLOWERS

see also BORREGO SPRINGS

find you way easily with the Anza Borrego Desert Map

This is the largest State Park in California and “open car camping” is allowed on the back roads. (also referred to as primitive camping, free camping or 4×4 camping) One of the few places in Southern California that you can camp outside of a developed Campground and still have a campfire. You gotta bring a large metal bucket to have your campfire in – as ashes scar white sandy washes and ground fires are not allowed.

Wildrose is an all-season campground in Wildrose Canyon, on the western edges of Death Valley National Park. This canyon gets very windy, so bring your guy lines, stakes & ropes for securing your tent. Motorhome RVs can make it in here, since the narrow road is a paved route – but be warned it can be curvy and slow going with the climb in elevation. This camp stays cooler than anything on the desert valley floor, so in summer months it can fill up quickly. Further up the hill are both Thorndike & Mahogany Flat Campgrounds (both close in winter, due to snow)

• Elevation: 4,100′
• Number of Sites: 30
• Vehicle Accessibility: Open to all
• Campsites Reservation: No
• Length of Stay: 30 Days
• Season: year round

Directions:

From Stovepipe Wells, follow Highway 190 W to Emigrant Canyon. Turn left on Wildrose Road and follow it thru the tight rocky canyon, climbing in elevation the whole way. Wildrose Campground is obvious and near the charcoal kilns turn off.

From Panamint Valley, take Wildrose Road up.

View Larger Map

Death Valley MAPS -

Death Valley Park – NatGeo
Death Valley Topo Map – Tom Harrison

Nearby attractions:

Death Valley National Park
Panamint Valley
Ballarat Ghost Town
Skidoo Town Site
Charcoal Kilns
Telescope Peak
Tuber Canyon
Tucki Mine