Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

We said farewell to Jumbo Rocks and headed south this morning.  The sewage dump at Cottonwood Spring was an hour south and lined up; by the time we’d dumped (grey/black), filled (fresh water), and hooked up (Accord), it was 10:30.  

We decided to take the old highway down to Mecca, instead of combat on the I-10. What a good decision! From Cottonwood Spring to the flats at Mecca, it was downhill all the way.  Across the I-10 and down aways, the highway entered a large wash; it continued for miles as the wash narrowed and deepened.  Finally, the highway emptied out on the irrigated green agricultural fields on the flat.  

Old highway to Mecca

No water (foreground) vs. irrigation (distance)

The recipe for agriculture here; take acres of sand, add water, plant something, stir with Mexicans, and presto, large amounts of money. We crossed the San Andreas Fault somewhere in the valley bottom, and headed south on Highway #86, along the Salton Sea.  The Salton Sea has existed and dried up many times over geological time.  Apparently, this iteration exists because engineers lost control of the Colorado River in 1905.  It’s 234 feet below sea level, and is right on the Fault.

Our Garmin took us down to Highway #78, west, and then up and into Borrego Springs from the south.  Borrego Springs is one of the three native Palm tree areas in California, a town of 3,000 people, and is surrounded entirely by the mountains of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.  ABDSP, at 600,000 acres, is the largest state park in California, and the continental U.S.  We pulled into Borrego Palm Canyon Campground, where we booked the two nights we could get.  Pricey, but level paved parking for the RV, full hook-ups (no generator) and simply gorgeous.  Heat!  We were warm, finally.  Nancy and Kirk explored about after supper, and I took the Runner out for a cruise.  The campground is tucked against the east flank of a large mountain, so the sun shuts off early, and gives an extended evening of shade.