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Anza Borrego Desert State Park Camping

Rules For Pets At Anza Borrego

Camping at Anza Borrego Desert State Park

Dogs are not allowed on trails or off-trails anywhere inside the Park. They are only allowed on park roads and in within your immediate campsite. Even then, it has to remain on a leash no longer than 6 feet. Dogs are generally frowned upon by park rangers. Dog poop and pee will confuse coyotes and cause them to abandon their territory and move into other potentially unwanted areas.

Fossil Canyon And Painted Gorge

Located near in the , and the surrounding area is a great place for rock hounding and hunting. The fossils here are not dinosaurs, but ancient , , and from the when the area was underwater.

The , located on the eastern side of the Coyote Mountains, consists of , and . and movement over time has created fantastic shapes and colors. Oranges, reds, purples, and mauves mixed with browns and blacks create a palette of color as the sun illuminates and plays shadows upon this geologic wonder.

Abstecher Nach Salton Sea

Eine mitunter empfohlene Option soll hier nicht unerwähnt bleiben: Ein Abstecher zu dem schon zuvor erwähnten Salton Sea, einem fast tausend Quadratkilometer großen Salzsee, der im Jahre 1905 in Folge eines Dammbruchs beim Bau eines Kanals entstanden ist. Wasser aus dem Colorado River konnte so in das tiefer gelegene Salton Basin fließen und den heutigen See bilden.

Obwohl es sich bei der Entstehung also um ein Unglück handelte, das die Landschaft in dieser Region komplett auf den Kopf stellte, begrüßte die Bevölkerung den neu geschaffenen See zunächst. Ein regelrechter Tourismus entstand, der auch neue Ansiedlungen begünstigte.

Doch der sinkende Wasserspiegel, der hohe Salzgehalt und die zunehmende Verschmutzung des Wassers durch Industrie und Landwirtschaft lassen Salton Sea zumindest heute kaum noch attraktiv wirken viele touristische Einrichtungen sind mittlerweile geschlossen. In zehn, zwanzig Jahren mögen Teile der Region daher möglicherweise als Geisterstadt taugen, aktuell jedoch spricht eigentlich nichts für einen Abstecher zum See.

  • Eintritt: kostenlos
  • Öffnungszeiten: täglich, Sonnenaufgang bis Sonnenuntergang
  • National Park Pass:
  • Wandern: einige schöne und nicht zu lange Wege
  • Zugänglichkeit: einige Dirt Roads, aber machbar
  • Zeitaufwand: von ein paar Stunden bis zu ein, zwei Tagen

Hotels in der Umgebung

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Arroyo Salado Primitive Campground

Arryo Salado Primitive Campground is conveniently located just off Borrego Salton Seaway , near the entrance to the Calcite Mine Trail and Truckhaven Trail . Ocotillo Wells Off-Highway Vehicle Area, a popular offroading destination, is a few miles east of the campground.

Amenities are limited to a couple of vault toilets, and there are no formal campsites or fire rings, so youll need to bring a fire pit if you want a campfire. This is a great place to camp if you dont have a reservation at one of the developed campgrounds but like the idea of having a toilet available.

Fish Creek Primitive Campground

Anza

Fish Creek Primitive Campground is located in the eastern portion of Anza Borrego Desert State Park, south of Ocotillo Wells . Its a great base from which to explore nearby Split Mountain Gorge, the Anza Borrego Wind Caves, and the Fish Creek-Vallecito Badlands. The campground offers vault toilets, fire rings, and six loosely defined campsites. You can also camp outside of the defined sites, but youll need your own fire pit if you want a campfire.

To get there, get off Route 78 in Ocotillo Wells onto Split Mountain Road and travel about 8 miles south to where the road splits off on the right to Fish Creek Wash. Fish Creek Campground is on the left after 1.4 miles. The campground sits on a rise above Fish Creek Wash near the entrance of Split Mountain Gorge.

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Primitive Anza Borrego Campgrounds

The park service has established the following rules for primitive and dispersed camping in the park:

  • Your vehicle can only be one car length from the road although you can hike away from the road to set up camp.
  • Do not trample on vegetation or drive over geological features.
  • You must camp at least 100 yards from any water source.
  • Ground fires are not permitted, so bring a camping fire pit if you want a campfire.
  • Bring your own firewood and take your cooled ashes with you gathering or taking of any live, dead, or downed vegetation is prohibited.
  • Pack out all of your garbage, including toilet paper and human waste.
  • Anza Borregos primitive campgrounds are designated first-come, first-served camping areas that offer few if any amenities. Camping is free. In some cases, distinct sites are demarcated by stones and fire rings, while other campgrounds allow you to camp wherever youd like to pitch a tent or park your RV. Fires are prohibited outside of official fire rings, to avoid scarring the slow-to-heal desert soil. Bringing a fire pit with you is another good option.

    Motels Hotels & Campgrounds

    In dem kleinen Borrego Springs gibt es gleich mehrere Unterkünfte, die sehr ordentlich sind und angesichts geringen Besucheraufkommens im Anza-Borrego Desert auch eingermaßen verträgliche Preise verlangen.

    Gut und recht günstig ist vor allem das Borrego Springs Resort & Spa, das Zimmer ab etwa 100$ die Nacht anbietet. Darf es etwas mehr sein, übernachtet man im La Casa del Zorro, das allerdings oft schon um die 150$ verlangt.

    Camper kommen auf dem offiziellen Campground direkt im State Park bestens unter, zahlreiche Stellplätze stehen im schon zuvor erwähnten Palm Canyon bereit. Reservierungen sind zum Teil online möglich und dann auch oft sinnvoll, ein Stellplatz für ein Wohnmobil kostet etwa 35$ die Nacht.

    In Borrego Springs findet man im Übrigen auch Tankstellen und ein, zwei kleine Supermärkte, sonst aber nur wenig Infrastruktur nicht einmal die üblichen Fast-Food-Lokale verschlägt es hierhin. Meist ist statt einer Übernachtung daher die Weiterfahrt sinnvoller.

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    Federal And State Representation

    In the , San Diego County is split between five congressional districts:

    San Diego County contains three public state universities: and . Major private universities in the county include , , , and . It also includes three law schools, USD School of Law, California Western School of Law, and Thomas Jefferson School of Law.

    Within the county there are 24 public elementary school districts, 6 high school districts, and 12 unified school districts. There are also 5 community college districts.

    There are two separate public library systems in San Diego County: the serving the city of San Diego, and the serving all other areas of the county. In 2010 the county library had 33 branches and two bookmobiles circulated over 10.7 million books, CDs, DVDs, and other material formats recorded 5.7 million visits to library branches and hosted 21,132 free programs and events. The San Diego County Library is one of the 25 busiest libraries in the nation as measured by materials circulated.

    Boondocking Inside The City Of Borrego Springs Ca

    Camping at Anza Borrego Desert State Park

    There is no boondocking or camping allowed within the City of Borrego Springs, CA.

    There is an area along Peg Leg Road , north east of the city limits, where many boondockers camp. Its BLM land there. This is the only place close to town where you can legally boondock.

    Note: Many people have been camping in the Galleta Meadows area off of Borrego Springs Rd . This is where most of the metal sculptures are. This is private property, and camping is not allowed here. Sheriffs deputies will remove you from the land, if the property owner, or the City complains.

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    A Complete Guide To Anza

    Since we purchased the California State Park pass last year, weve been trying to visit our state parks as often as possible. It wasnt until last spring, when everyone was going bonkers for wildflowers during the super bloom, that we learned about Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. This is Californias largest state park, located about 80 miles north west of San Diego. Anza-Borrego is most well-known for its spring wildflowers, but we discovered enough natural wonders to have us looking forward to coming back in any season. Heres our guide to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

    Sonny Bono Salton Sea Nwr

    The is located 40 miles north of the border at the southern end of the in California’s . Situated along the , the refuge is the only one of its kind, located 227 feet below sea level. Because of its southern latitude, elevation, and location in the , the refuge experiences some of the highest temperatures in the nation. Daily temperatures from May to October generally exceed 100 °F with temperatures of 116120 °F recorded yearly.

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    What Is The Maximum Time Limit For Camping

    Anza Borrego Desert State Park allows dispersed camping for no longer than 30 days in a calendar year. You can move your camp to other areas of the park, as long as the combined time of camping does not exceed 30 days. After that, you are not allowed to disperse camp inside the Park for a full year.

    However, you can still camp inside developed campgrounds .

    When To Visit Anza

    Anza

    Anza-Borrego hosts a lot of out-of-state winter visitors looking to escape the cold and enjoy the mild California desert temperatures. December through February sees highs in the 60s and lows in the 40s. Things quickly heat up, with April and May in the 80s, and June starting to hit triple digits.

    On our visit over the last weekend in March, daytime temps were already pretty warm, so we appreciated the partially cloudy day. We found shade during our mid-day hike of the slot canyon and waited until later in the afternoon to do a second hike, Borrego Canyon. This meant cooler temperatures and a partially shaded trail by the mountain.

    While summer days can be scorching, the lows are in the 70s, which means its shorts and t-shirt weather for stargazing.

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    Mountain Palm Springs Campground

    Image from The Dyrt camper Morgan D.

    Located near the Bow Willow Campground, the Mountain Palm Springs Campground is another primitive option in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. This is a particularly rugged campground, accessible only via a graded dirt road and surrounded by cholla cacti. There are no amenities except for a vault toilet.

    Hikers will enjoy the easy access to trails leading to Pygmy Grove, Marys Grove, the Palm Bowl and Southwest Grove.

    This has been a family favorite camp spot for years! There are no amenities of a normal campground, only a vault toilet is provided. Bring your own water, picnic table, fire pit etc. There are no set campsites, just pick what area looks good to you. There is a trailhead that leads to a short hike to an oasis that is pretty popular.The Dyrt camper Morgan D.

    Scissors Crossing Anza Borrego Desert State Park

    Anza Borrego Desert State Park is perhaps the only park within the California State Parks system to offer free boondocking up to 30 days in a 12 month period. Scissors Crossing happens to be located inside park boundaries, right on a convenient intersection of Highway 78 and County Road S2.

    Its most commonly known as a parking lot for day hikers looking for an afternoon along Pacific Crest Trail. But its also open for camping and overnight parking.

    What makes Scissors Crossing advantageous is that it offers proximity to Julian, a popular tourist attraction, as well as Borrego Springs, a destination for desert hikers and bicyclists. But it also offers a relatively close distance to San Diego, Temecula, and Riverside. If you need to be close to those big cities, and also need a place to boondock, you probably wont find anything closer than Scissors Crossing.

    Its regularly patrolled by State Park rangers most of whom are particularly concerned about enforcing campfire rules. You are required to contain campfires in a metal container, but you are not allowed to gather firewood. You can only bring in firewood from outside.

    Verizon 4G signal is generally weak while driving through this area, but somehow this parking lot gets an extra bar of improved signal than compared to the roadway. Its most likely due to being elevated by about 8 to 10 feet above the pavement.

    Still, during the time we camped here, we enjoyed a lot of peace and quiet.

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    Best Places For Boondocking In Anza Borrego

    Blair Valley large area off of County Road S2, just a mile east of Shelter Valley. Very popular area, has pit toilets. Weak Verizon 4G signal, however.

    Slot Canyon Dispersed camping area for small to medium sized RVs. Popular for hikers planning to crawl through the slot canyon

    Peg Leg Road Lots of free camping on a wide clearing on the east-side of Peg Leg Road. This is technically outside of Park boundaries, on BLM land. State Park rules do not apply here. Very popular area in Winter.

    Carrizo Valley In the southern portion of the park, along County Road S2. This is technically outside of Park boundaries, on BLM land. State Park rules do not apply here.

    Scissors Crossing This is on the far-west side of the Park, still inside Park boundaries. Located at the intersection with County Road S2 and State Highway 78. This is parking lot for hikers on Pacific Crest Trail, but boondocking permitted here.

    Sheep Canyon Primitive Campground

    Anza-Borrego Desert State Park (California)–overview & camping

    Sheep Canyon Primitive Campground is the most isolated of the developed campgrounds in Anza Borrego, requiring a long hike in or a high-clearance 4-wheel-drive vehicle to reach it . This remote campground is the northernmost of the developed campgrounds, located just past the confluence of two stream-filled canyons, Sheep Canyon and South Fork Sheep Canyon. Note that the park service closes this area, more generally known as Coyote Canyon, during the summer months, as the streams are important water sources for the indigenous bighorn sheep. Its worth checking with the visitors center before planning a trip here. There is a $10 per night fee for camping in Sheep Canyon .

    The campground offers a few defined sites with fire rings, and many other options for dispersed camping . The campground also offers vault toilets. Like the rest of the primitive campgrounds in Anza Borrego, there are no trashcans, so youll need to pack out your trash.

    There are many nearby hiking trails. Sheep Canyon offers a steep two-mile hike to a terrific overlook. South Fork Sheep Canyon offers a more difficult trail that brings you to a 30-foot waterfall. Several nearby canyons such as Cougar, Indian, and Salvador canyons also offer hikes along streams and other waterfalls to discover.

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    Can You Camp Anywhere In Anza Borrego Desert State Park

    Yes, for the most part you can camp anywhere in Anza Borrego Desert State Park, as long as your vehicle remains on established roads and trails, and pulls into previously used campsites and clearings. There actually are established park orders designating where primitive camping and backcountry camping is allowed.

    Getting To Yaqui Pass Campground

    Yaqui Pass Primitive Campground is located between Tamarisk Grove Campground and Borrego Springs off Highway S3 as crosses the mountains from Tamarisk Grove and into Borrego Springs.

    From Highway 78 near Tamarkis Grove Campground, take the S3 3.2 miles northeast to the top of the pass, keeping an eye peeled for the campground on the right.

    From Borrego Springs, near the Casa Del Zoro resort and the intersection with Borrego Springs Road, take Yaqui Pass Road 4.7 miles south to the campground.

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    Vern Whitaker Horse Camp

    Vern Whitaker Horse Camp, located about 4 miles north of Borrego Springs, is a great home base for exploring the northern parts of Anza Borrego on horseback . Reserved for equestrians, this campground offers 12 developed campsites for RVs or tents and offers around 40 horse corrals. The campground is open all year round, but peak season is during the cool months, October to April.

    The campground is situated in a secluded desert valley at the intersection of over 30 miles of equestrian trails, including Horse Camp Trail, Desert Trail and Ocotillo Flats Trail. Amenities include potable water, restrooms and coin-operated showers. The campground can accommodate trailers up to 35-feet in length.

    Scenic Driving Tour Erosion Road

    One of my favorite spots. Anza

    The Erosion Road driving tour pamphlet provides a 21-mile one-way self-guided driving tour. If you only have one day in Anza Borrego, the Erosion Road tour isnt a top priority.

    The tour takes you east from the park towards the Salton Sea with stops at several geological sights. You do not need a valid admission pass to take this tour since it follows a public road. However, I would recommend only if you are driving east on Highway S22 or are particularly interested in geology.

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    Arroyo Salado Campground Anza Borrego Desert State Park California

    RV Camping at Arroyo Salado Campground

    17 Palms Oasis

    Santa Rosa Mountains with the Salton Sea in the distance

    Palm Wash Canyon

    Arroyo Salado Campground is an exciting place to camp among beautiful sandstone hills below the Santa Rosa Mountains in Anza Borrego Desert State Park. You dont have to go far for an awesome view. Just pick a hill and climb. Youll see the Salton Sea to the east, Santa Rosa Mountains to the north, Borrego Badlands to the southwest, and several more mountain ranges beyond, possibly crowned with a coat of winter snow.

    Anza Borrego Desert State Park is a perfect winter playground for more adventurous types, and its very popular with snowbirds.

    Arroyo Salado Campground GPS Coordinates: N 33 16.829 W 116 08.881

    Elevation: 869 feet

    Campground Directions: From Highway 86 in Salton City head west on Highway S22 for 11.5 miles, then turn left on the primitive road. The turn is easy to miss – slow down and look for a small campground sign just before the highway reaches a wash. The campsites are in the hills and you won’t see them from the highway. Once on the primitive road you’ll see the campsites, all within the first 1/2 mile.

    The Campsites: There are just a handful of campsites and these are best for small RVs under 30 feet. This campground is more popular with tent campers.

    Arroyo Salado Campground Map

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    Anza Borrego Desert State Park, Arroyo Salado RV Camping Journal

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