Focus: How to have the best wildflowers experience amid potential super bloom
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Wildflowers have started to sprout in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and a little planning will go a long way toward taking advantage of this year’s highly anticipated super bloom.
Visitors will likely only have until the end of the month to behold a large field of yellow Desert Sunflowers or purple Canterbury Bells or sniff out a fragrant patch of Spectacle-pod.
Given the fleeting and fickle nature of wildflower blooms, we’re offering a few tips to help visitors make the most of this year’s promising spectacle.
To start, don’t wait a few weeks to going hunting for wildflowers. Following ample winter rains, the most lush desert spring in more than a decade could fade quickly under harsh winds, rising temperatures and ravenous caterpillars, according to park officials.
“This is probably the first big bloom in at least 12 years and maybe more like 20 years,” said Sally Theriault, state park interpreter with the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.
“I’ll go out on a limb and say it’ll last probably a week or two, but those caterpillars are a force of nature to be reckoned with for sure,” she added.
If you’re planning to drive two hours east from San Diego into the desert park, you’ll probably want to head out early. Afternoon temperatures could break into the 90s this weekend, and desert rays are unforgiving. (It’s essential to bring sunscreen and lots of water.)
Getting a prompt start could also help you beat the crowds. Anza-Borrego is California’s biggest state park at 630,000 acres, stretching from the Riverside County line to the Mexican border in eastern San Diego County. But most people pack into the most accessible parts of the desert, and park officials are expecting huge flocks of visitors this spring.
“There’s going to be a lot of visitors coming to the same area, so we would recommend coming midweek if possible,” said Briana Puzzo, education manager for the Anza-Borrego Foundation, a nonprofit partner and fundraiser for the park.
A good place to start, especially if you’ve never been to the park before, is the visitors center at the Borrego Palm Canyon Campground. You can pick up a free wildflower guide at this unique gift shop and information center, which also offers an outdoor garden with many of the region’s plants marked with placards.
Also located at the park’s main campground is the Borrego Palm Canyon trail, which offers a roughly 45-minute hike to an oasis. A number of different flowers have already been spotted on the trail, such as Monkeyflower, poppies and Phacelia. Parking spots at the trail head have been hard to come by after around 11 a.m., according to officials.
Wildflowers can often be found along the side of the road or just a short hike from pull-offs along the road.
For example, wildflowers have been spotted recently at Desert Gardens north of the town of Borrego Springs, as well as at Slot Canyon off of Highway 78.
People with four-wheel drive vehicles can also roam the Borrego and Carrizo badlands in search of desert blooms.
One of the most challenging aspects of a trip to the desert during wildflower season is where to stay.
At this time of year, campsites in the park are almost always completely booked months in advance on the weekends. But there are a few spots still available during the week.
Likewise, Hotels in Borrego Springs can book up fast if you don’t plan at least a few weeks out.
For those with a bit more grit, there are a number of primitive campsites that are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. These don’t provide running water but usually have at least one pit toilet.
If you head to the desert during the next few weeks, it’s important to remember that blooms can be unpredictable. Don’t get discouraged or frustrated if reports of wildflowers don’t deliver as promised.
Check in with the park’s wildflower hotline at (760) 767-4684. With patience, persistence and luck, folks should find a wide variety of plant life this year popping up through the desert sands.
Where to view wildflowers in and around Anza-Borrego Desert State Park
*Find the locations below using this map of the park.
Eastern end of Henderson Canyon Road
- Desert Sunflowers
- Desert Lilies
- Sand Verbena
- Dune Evening Primrose
- Lupine
North End of Di Giorgio Road to Desert Gardens/Ocotillo Flats
- Poppies
- Desert Lilies
- Sand Verbena
- Dune Evening Primrose
- Spectacle Pod
- Brown-Eyed Evening Primrose
- Lupine
Borrego Palm Canyon
- Canterbury Bells
- Poppies
- Monkey Flowers
- Phacelia
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Visitor’s Center and Garden
- Poppies
- Desert Dandelion
- Chicory
- Phacelia
- Brittlebush
- Chuparosa
Slot Canyon via Buttes Pass Road off Highway 78
- Desert Lilies
- Lupine
- Brittlebush
Carrizo Badlands Overlook via Canyon Sin Nombre off Highway S-2
- Lupine
- Spectacle Pod
- Desert Lilies
*Those with four-wheel-drive vehicles can hunt for desert flowers on the dirt roads in the Borrego Badlands, accessible via Arroyo Salado primitive camp off Highway S-22, as well as the Carrizo Badlands via Split Mountain Road off Highway 78.
WHERE TO STAY
Campsites in the park are almost completely booked on the weekends through the end of the month, with a few spots still available during the week. Reservation are made through the Reserve America website: reserveamerica.com
However, folks can try for a first-come-first-serve spot at a number of primitive campsites in the park, which offer pit toilets but no running water. Here are a few such locations:
- Arroyo Salado primitive camp on Highway S-22
- Culp Valley on Highway S-22
- Blair Valley on Highway S-2
Visitors can also try to reserve rooms at a hotel in the town of Borrego Springs. Options include: Casa del Sol, Borrego Valley Inn, Palm Canyon Resort, Borrego Springs Resort and Hacienda del Sol.
GUIDED TOURS
- The Anza-Borrego Foundation will host several wildflower tours during the next two weeks. Park staff will guide visitors along leisurely hikes through a variety of locations depending on bloom conditions, including on March 10, 15, 17, 24 and 31. Those interested should meet at the foundation’s storefront at 8:30 a.m. and prepare to return around 11:30 a.m.
- San Diego Natural History Museum’s Canyoneers, an organization of volunteer nature guides, is planning two hikes in the state park this month that will include opportunities to see wildflowers. Those trips on March 18 and 19 include a trek from Coyote Canyon to Lower Willows to visit the largest year-round spring in the county, as well as a visit to Plum Canyon along an abandoned wagon road.
PLACES TO VIEW WILDFLOWERS NEAR SAN DIEGO:
- Carmel Mountain Preserve – Wildflowers are expected to start to bloom in the next two weeks. For more information, call (858) 538-8066
- Mission Trails Regional Park – Wildflowers are blooming in the area, most notably on the Oak Canyon trail. For more information, call (619) 668-3281
- Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve – Wildflower have started blooming in the reserve, especially along they Guy Fleming Trail. For more information, call: (858) 755-2063
- Otay Valley Regional Park — Wildflower bloom has started and is expected to pick up over the next two weeks. For more information, call: (619) 424-0463
BEFORE YOU GO
- Check the weather forecast
- Take plenty of water and food
- Pack a hat and sunscreen
- Pick up a free wildflower guidebook at the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park or the Anza-Borrego Foundation office at 587 Palm Canyon Drive in Borrego Springs
- Make sure your cellphone is fully charged so you can take plenty of photos
- Leave the dogs at home. They’re not allowed on trails and highly discouraged in the park in general because their presence disturbs bighorn sheep
WHILE YOU’RE THERE
- Stick to designated trails
- Avoid trampling plants
- Don’t pick wildflowers
- Pack out all garbage
Twitter: @jemersmith
Phone: (619) 293-2234
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