Anza Borrego Desert State Park
Anza-Borrego
Desert State Park is a little more than an hour east of San Diego. Encompassing
more than 600,000 acres, there are numerous hikes in a variety of terrain.
Having been here several times before, we concentrated on an area of the park
where we had never hiked—along S-2 south of Scissors Crossing.
http://www.anzaborrego.statepark.org/
S-2 roughly follows the old Southern Emigrant Trail, which was first used by Spanish explorers and then later by the Butterfield Overland Stage and numerous emigrants taking the southern route to California. The passage through Box Canyon was created by the Mormon Battalion in 1847 using only hand tools.
Blair Valley is just east of S-2 between Granite Mountain and Whale Peak. Trails to Marshall South’s home, morteros, and pictographs are located off the dirt road which traverses the valley.
As camping novices who enjoy the finer things in life, we selected Agua Caliente County Park for a 2-night stay. A stay in this campground provides the luxury of a soak in the natural hot spring pool at the end of the day.
On our way out of the park, we took the Erosion Road Tour—a 10-stop journey along S-22 between Borrego Springs and Salton City.
On March 3rd, we returned to see the wildflowers. Spring Blooms
Trails and Treasures Home Page Journey to the American Southwest 2003
