Anza Borrego State Park – Hiking

Wilson Trail

Our favorite trail, about 9 miles long round-trip, is Wilson Trail which is the western part of Anza Borrego State Park and sits around 3,500 to 4,300 feet above sea level which is well above the 600′ elevation of Borrego Springs. This makes for a great way to find some much cooler weather in the warmer months of spring, summer, or fall. But in February this meant we saw patches of snow along the trail. Yowzer! But, we had a beautiful day and a beautiful hike. We love this hike!

Wilson Trailhead

More snow

Lunch break at the end of the trail with a nice view

View of Borrego Valley – citrus farms

View over Borrego Font’s Point

A bit of snow on the trail

Snow at the edge of the view point

Along Wilson Trail

Heading back down the trail

Along Wilson Trail

Culp Valley

We drove back via the Culp Valley dirt road and saw a few washed out areas but managed, after stopping and calculating how to drive over those, to get through the area without damaging the underneath of our vehicle.

Culp Valley road

Stopping to check if we hit bottom along Culp Valley Rd

Alcoholic Pass

Another one of our must-do hikes is Alcoholic Pass in Coyote Canyon. Even though it is a short hike, about a mile up and a mile down, we love the plateau at the top and always have our lunch up there. A lovely hike.

Trail head for Alcoholic Pass

Along the trail

Heading up

Halfway up the trail

Views of the citrus groves in the background

Atop the pass looking over to Rockhouse Canyon

Atop the trail

Looking at the view of Coyote Canyon from atop Alcoholic Pass

Heading up through the Ocotillos

Bill Kenyon Overlook

Anytime we drive over Yaqui Pass we stop at Bill Kenyon Overlook. It is a short hike to the overlook and the views are worth it.

Looking for Bighorn Sheep

Anza Borrego State Park Bill Kenyon Overlook

Looking over the valley

Cactus Loop

Another fun, but short hike, is the Cactus Loop hike which is across from the Tamarisk Campground. There are lots of Jumping Cholla there (and sometimes some Desert Bighorn Sheep) so watch where you step. We hiked there on our own and also took our grand kids on it and had a blast.

Heading back down the mountain

Selfie along Cactus Loop

Heading up the mountain

Starting the loop – full of Teddy Bear (AKA Jumping) Cholla

Blair Valley

Blair Valley is a nice area to drive and offers 3 nice hikes, The Marshal South house, the Morteros Trail, and the Pictographs/Smugglers Pass hike. We drove out there on a grey, rainy day and hiked the Morteros and Pictographs/Smugglers trails with our grand kids. A fun day and we lucked out and didn’t get any rain.

Arriving in Smugglers Pass

View from Smugglers Pass

View heading back to the trail head

Clark Dry Lake Oasis

Another hike we like to do every year while boondocking off Rockhouse Trail is to walk across the valley north to a Tamarisk Oasis. You meander over Clark Dry Lake on an old jeep road and get to a lovely oasis full of sand and trees and shade. Just the perfect outing for a hot, hot day. The hike is about 10 miles round trip and well worth it.