Tee Party

My friend Andrea and I decided to take a year off from work and travel the world. That’s when life got stressful.

We were paralyzed by the possibilities. Fiji? Nepal? All countries beginning with the letter K? Travelogues littered every table in the house. Our constant Web browsing created so many bookmarks that our computer looked dogeared. Excessive spinning of the globe perched atop our kitchen counter led to wrist strains.

It sounded absurd, but we were suffering from leisure-related burnout. We desperately needed a timeout from our time off. We sought a moratorium on any talk of internal frame backpacks and the merits of the Japanese encephalitis vaccination. We craved a weekend in which the most taxing decision would be which strength sun block to apply. Rejuvenation awaited 90 miles northeast of our San Diego home, in the desert oasis of Borrego Springs--specifically, the Borrego Springs Resort & Country Club. Our destination offered two luxuries we would miss during our year of being vagabonds: golf and indoor plumbing.

We pulled out of the city on Interstate 15 one recent Friday afternoon and merged into the congested early-getaway lane. Two hours of twisting road, California Highway 78, brought us to the boundary of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, the largest state park in California. We stopped at an overlook near the summit of County Road S22 and gazed down on Borrego Springs, a postage stamp of green enveloped by a brown desert floor. Across the valley jutted the Santa Rosa Mountains, craggy, creviced and streaked gray by alluvial fans. A sign told us we were being watched by bighorn sheep, shy beasts that traverse the surrounding boulder-strewn peaks.

Borrego Springs and nearby Palm Springs share a similar landscape and climate, but they are opposite in temperament. There is little glitz and gourmet to be found here, unless you count karaoke/prime rib night at Carlee’s, the town’s lone tavern. The scenery remains in the foreground, as the architecture submits to the desert rather than conquering it.

This is especially true of the 100-room Borrego Springs Resort, where only a thin line of transplanted palms and beaver-tail cactus separates the simple stucco hotel from the beautiful wasteland encircling it. No marble and gold here to distract you from the real sights. The theme is solidly one of function over form, right down to the wet rectangle of a pool.

I had requested a second-floor room with a view of the desert. Our key opened the door to a first-floor room with a view of the parking lot. We were cheerfully moved. Vehicles were still visible, but now so were our striking natural surroundings.

The standard double room was spacious and spotless, furnished with a king-size bed and decorated in Southwestern teal and mauve. It lacked the charm of accommodations we enjoyed a few months earlier at nearby La Casa del Zorro, where weekend room rates start at $135 a night, but our room was not without its pluses. The wet bar, featuring a microwave and mini-fridge with an automatic ice maker, was a nice touch. So too was the large red-tiled balcony, complete with a wrought-iron bistro table and chairs. The sofa-sleeper would appeal to parents traveling with small children. Another bonus was the complimentary continental breakfast, which included cold cereals, pastries and fruit. The resort may not be a romantic destination, but it makes a sensible base from which to enjoy the activities in the area.

One activity we would not care to repeat is dinner at the adjacent Borrego Springs Country Club. The dark lighting and burgundy velvet chairs could not hide the fact we were dining in a boxy room that could double as an American Legion bingo hall.

Our server was at a loss to describe the “broasted chicken” listed midway down the menu. Andrea took a flier on it anyway, figuring it had to be in the broiled or roasted family. What arrived was a breast-less plate--two thighs and a wing--of fried fowl. Meantime, I was happy with my fillet of salmon, a sensation that lasted until I saw the quarter-size blotch of mold invading my moist dinner roll. Our appetizer of sauteed wild mushrooms turned up after the entrees. We passed on dessert.

On Saturday morning, we eagerly made our way across the complex to the country club’s golf course. It may not be on a par with the upscale layouts in Palm Springs, but it was good-quality desert golf. Each of the 18 holes had four teeing areas, making the course a test for the long hitter without overwhelming the skills of the weekend duffer.

After warming up at the excellent practice facility, we aimed our cart down the first palm-lined fairway, happy that there were only six other golfers on the course.

Andrea surprised us both by carding her first birdie ever, knocking an 8-iron close to the pin at the par-3 sixth hole, then rolling in her putt. It was a dramatic comeback from the 13 she had posted at an earlier hole, where she completed the nasty task with the grit of the last-place finisher in a marathon. But therein lies the beauty of golf in Borrego Springs: You can take 13 hacks at a ball and not feel rushed.

After eating so-so burgers at the 19th hole, we moved on to tennis. Actually, Andrea and I don’t play tennis so much as a game called Sorry. Hit it in the net; “Sorry!” Hit it in the fence; “Sorry!” But the six empty courts boasting lights, soda machines and drinking fountains beckoned. As we flailed and huffed, the sun dipped behind the peaks, turning the burnt orange mountains the color of a bruise. We wobbled out the gate, and pronounced this tennis facility the finest we had ever desecrated.

We ate dinner across town at the Krazy Coyote Saloon and Grille. The restaurant, adorned with brightly colored Oaxaca masks made from coconut shells, is housed in the Palms at Indian Head resort, frequented by Hollywood stars in the ‘40s and ‘50s when it operated as the Hoberg Resort Hotel. Before our delectable meals of Nicoise salad and filet mignon arrived at our patio table, we had already decided to stay at this enchanting inn on our next visit.

We teed up Sunday morning at Rams Hill Country Club, a more challenging and picturesque course than the Borrego Springs Country Club. As the name implies, the 18-hole track meanders over a hillside, affording spectacular views of the desert. There is no hotel, but $175 a night gets you a furnished casita with a full kitchen.

Midway through our round, we were joined by Eli, a San Diegan who owns a weekend home at Rams Hill. He pointed across the empty desert floor to the Borrego Badlands, an unearthly formation stretching east toward the Salton Sea. “There is something almost spiritual about this place,” he said.

Back in town, we spotted a sign for the Smoketree Art Gallery, the latest addition to the Borrego art scene. Owner and painter Sandra Thorpe recently converted part of her home into a gallery and tearoom. We wandered into the garage, where our eyes quickly locked onto an abstract sculpture of a man. Resting on his shoulders, in place of a head, was a globe. The blue sphere returned us to reality. It was now back to the grind of intercontinental trip planning. Awaiting us at home was our own globe and a world of possibilities.

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Budget for Two

Borrego Springs Resort & Country Club, two nights: $230.00

Dinner, Borrego Springs Resort: 55.25

Golf, Borrego Springs Resort: 128.00

Lunch, Borrego Springs Resort: 25.95

Dinner, Krazy Coyote Saloon and Grille: 53.65

Golf, Rams Hill Country Club: 210.00

Lunch, Rams Hill Restaurant: 25.29

Gas: 10.00

FINAL TAB: $738.14

Borrego Springs Resort & Country Club, 1112 Tilting T Drive, Borrego Springs, CA 92004; tel. (888) 264- 6539.