Anza-Borrego Desert State Park ®

Phone Number

(760) 767-4205

Max. Trailer Lengths

Trailer: Up to 35 Feet
Camper/Motorhome: Up to 35 Feet

Park Hours

  • Visitor Center Hours: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Open Monday - Sunday, including Holidays.
  • Visitor Center parking lot: 7 a.m - 7 p.m.
  • Borrego Palm Canyon Trail and parking lot, Hellhole Canyon Trail and parking lot open sunrise to sunset.
  • Font's Point, Font's Point parking lot, Slot Canyon Trail and Slot Canyon Trail parking lot open 1 hour before sunrise to 1 hour after sunset.
  • Vern Whitaker Horse Camp Day Use: Closed

Dogs Allowed?

Yes
Dogs allowed in the campgrounds, on designated park roads, and the Visitor Center/Campground Trail.

Driving Directions to Anza-Borrego Desert SP ®

The Visitor Center is located at the west end of Palm Canyon Dr. Approaching from the west on S-22, make a left at the stop sign at the intersection of Montezuma Valley Rd and Palm Canyon Dr. Follow Palm Canyon Drive to the parking lot at the end. If approaching from the east, Borrego Salton Seaway, follow S-22 through the town of Borrego Springs. S-22 will turn into Palm Canyon Drive. Follow Palm Canyon Drive all the way to the parking lot at the end of the road.
Walk 200 yards on the sidewalk from the flagpole to the front doors of our underground building.

Visitors will be able to reserve campsites six months in advance from the current date. Bookings may extend from the arrival date to the desired departure date – based on availability and the park’s maximum stay rules.
Reservation are available October 1st through April 30th.

OVERNIGHT FACILITIES
En route Campsites
Environmental Campsites
Family Campsites
Group Campsites
Hike or Bike Campsites
Primitive Camping
RV Sites w/Hookups
RV Dump Station
Alternative Camping
RV Access
TRAIL USE
Bike Trails
Hiking Trails
Horseback Riding
DAY-USE ACTIVITIES & FACILITIES
Historical/Cultural Site
Picnic Areas
Env. Learning/Visitor Center
Exhibits and Programs
Interpretive Exhibits
Nature & Wildlife Viewing
Family Programs
OTHER FACILITIES & VISITOR INFORMATION
Parking
Restrooms / Showers
Restrooms
Drinking Water Available

CLOSURES

Sheep Camp / Coyote Canon is closed at the third (3rd) crossing to vehicle traffic due to recent storm damage.

 

Park Watch:  Anza-Borrego Desert State Park has a “Park Watch” program to help reduce theft, burglary, resource damage, and other crimes in the park.  You are invited to participate and help in the safety and protection of Anza-Borrego DSP, your campsite, as well as other campsites, other areas & park visitors around you.  If you see any of crimes or other crimes, please call the Anza-Borrego Desert Visitor Center at: 760-767-4205 

To reduce theft and other crimes, State Park Peace Officers ask you to take the following steps:

-Secure valuables in your vehicle trunk when leaving your campsite.

-Introduce yourself to those camped around you and agree to help in watching each other’s campsite and personal belongings.

-Mark your belongings for easy identification.

-Report any suspicious Activities immediately.

By following these few, simple tips, you may be assuring yourself and your neighbors of a safe, fun, and relaxing stay at your California State Park.

General Park Regulations:

This list of regulations is intended to make your camping stay at Anza-Borrego DSP a more enjoyable experience.  Anytime during your stay, if you need assistance, please contact park staff and they will help you out.

Check in Time is at 2:00 PM each day. (Sorry, No Exceptions)

-Camping fees include entry for 1 vehicle and 1 legally towed vehicle or trailer.  Additional vehicles must register and pay additional fees (Currently $10.00 each vehicle.)

-Campers under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent / legal guardian, or provide, upon arrival, a letter from a parent / legal guardian granting permission to camp.  All juveniles must be in their own campsite at 10:00 PM.

-Quiet hours are from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM.  Visitors not staying overnight must be out by 10:00 PM.

-Generators may be operated in the park between the hours of 10:00 Am and 8:00 PM.

-Campsites are limited to 8 people maximum and is designed for individual family use.  Large groups may require a Special Event Permit.

-Campsites are limited to 2 vehicles.  There is no parking for more vehicles.  A trailer is counted as a vehicle. 

-Animals must be on a leash less than 6 feet in length at all times, and may not be left unattended or outside at night.

-Alcohol and glass containers are prohibited beyond your campsite.

-All park plants and animals are protected.  Do not cut, attach items, or harass any plants or animals.

-Along all park designated dirt roads, vehicles must be parked no more than one (1) car length off a given  road where it will not disturb any natural features.

-Bicycles, mountain bikes, and skateboards must remain on all paved roads.  All riders under the age of 18 years of age must wear a bicycle helmet.

-Illegal ground fires are prohibited.  Campfires must be kept inside a camp stove or in a metal container provided the camper with a bottom and sides.

-All natural & cultural features are protected.  Nothing may be removed or disturbed.

-The entire backcountry area of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is defined as a camping facility.  Occupancy by the same persons, equipment, or vehicles of any camping facility within Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is limited to a total of thirty (30) days in any calendar year.

-No person shall launch, land, or operate a powered unmanned aircraft or Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) within Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

-All roadways in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park-dirt, sandy wash, or paved are considered a road.  The California Vehicle Code applies to all roadways in the park and all vehicles must be highway legal per the California Vehicle Code and must remain on all designated roadways. All Off-Road Vehicles are prohibited in the park.  

-Firearms and fireworks are prohibited anywhere in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

No Drone Zone

-Drones are prohibited in the airspace above the reserve for several reasons, including the visual threat to wildlife and intruding on visitors' experience. For detailed information on the Posted Order 940-15-002 - CDD Unmanned Aircraft. and to reveiw the web page regarding the State authority over airspace.

 
Campfires will be based on DSO – 940-20-015 - Fire Restrictions – Anza-Borrego Desert State Park - Fire Ban / Restrictions during Extreme Heat / Fire Danger Warnings / Limited Firefighting Resources.  As a result of extreme fire danger and limited firefighting resources, the following fire restrictions are in effect during Extreme Heat / Fire Danger Warnings / Limited Fire Fighting Resources: Open fires, including campfires and barbecues are prohibited at Blair Valley Primitive Campground, Culp Valley Primitive Campground and any backcountry campsites and day-use parking areas.  Portable propane or gas stoves are permitted for cooking only within designated campsite and day-use areas.

ATTENTION: Camping is allowed again in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park; please continue to observe social distancing guidelines.

A DAY USE FEE of $10 per car is now being collected at The Slot (Buttes Pass area) and at Hellhole Canyon. 

For current fire restrictions please call 760-767-4037

The first palm grove in Borrego Palm Canyon is closed due to fire damage. The trail now ends at a viewpoint overlooking the grove. Your cooperation will help the Palm Grove recover and keep the trail open. See map of closed area.

Anza-Borrego Desert SP and the Anza-Borrego Foundation are excited to announce a new partnership with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics for the upcoming 2020/2021 desert season. This new partnership and the Leave No Trace Initiative will encourage and educate new and returning visitors to Anza-Borrego to care for the local desert and public lands through the “Seven Principles of Leave No Trace”, available in English and Spanish. The initiative also reminds the public on their role to slow the spread of COVID-19. With many activities limited during the pandemic, outdoor public spaces have been essential to many Californians. As a result, California State Parks and partners are expecting high visitation and increased use with the beginning of the desert season this month through March/April of next year.

Below are links to the Leave No Trace principles and recommendations for getting outside during COVID-19. You can also find more information on the partnership and the Leave No Trace initiative here.

  • The Leave No Trace Seven Principles (English | Spanish)
  • The Leave No Trace Recommendations for Getting Outside During Covid-19 (English | Spanish)

Tips to Safely Enjoy Anza-Borrego Desert State Park During the Summer Season

It is important for visitors to plan their outdoor adventure at Anza-Borrego Desert SP or any desert properly. Simple actions such as taking plenty of water (1 gallon/per person/day) and food, and knowing that cell coverage is extremely limited or non-existent can help you be better prepared to safely enjoy the desert. 

During the summer season, temperatures can range reach 125 degrees during the day. It is important to plan properly for your California desert adventure.

Below you will find just a few tips to safely enjoy the desert:

Vehicles

  • Have a proper vehicle for your outdoor desert activities to be able to navigate through rough roads.
  • Check ROAD CONDITIONS before heading out on dirt roads.
  • We encourage you to travel with a second vehicle when on dirt roads.

Cell Phone Use

  • Cell phone coverage is spotty or nonexistent. Have a way to communicate if there is an emergency.

First Aid Kit

  • Bring a first aid kit and become familiar with it.

Outdoor Plan

  • Leave an itinerary of your trip with a family member or friend with information such as name and age of hikers/campers, trailhead or campsite name and location, and expected return date.

Hiking/Camping: 

  • Make sure to have plenty of water and food for duration of your trip to avoid dehydration, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
  • Check Weather. Weather can change instantly.
  • Dress appropriately with layers of clothing and appropriate shoes such as hiking boots and close-toed shoes.
  • Mark tents and ropes so they are visible at night.
  • Keep it clean: pack it in & pack it out.

For more tips for visiting the desert, check out our news release for additional details.

PLEASE NOTE: Please follow current COVID-19 guidelines while attending park programs. Please call the Visitor Center (760-767-4205) for information about specific programs. 

Follow us on the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Facebook page and Instagram @anzaborregodesertsp for more stories about Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

Tell us how you liked the interpretive programs you attended. Fill out the Visitor RAPPORT Survey.

Self-Guided Activities

Children's Outdoor Parks Passport

Junior Ranger Adventure Guide

You can print out a Black-and-White cover to color! Spanish cover.

NOTICE:  Camping is allowed again in Anza-Borrego; Please continue to follow all social distancing guidelines.

When using map apps., it is best to use Anza Borrego Desert State Park® Visitor Center for directions to the Visitor Center.  Using only Anza-Borrego Desert State Park® in some map apps. may result in directions leading to a dirt, 4 wheel drive road.

PARK MAP

California State Parks collects day use fees of $10 per vehicle per day at the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Visitor Center, at developed campgrounds, and at The Slot, Hellhole Canyon, Mountain Palm Springs, Bow Willow, and Horse Camp . The day use fee ticket is valid at any State Park in the Colorado Desert District for the date of purchase.

Reservations for Borrego Palm Canyon Campground are made through Reserve California (www.reservecalifornia.com or 1-800-444-7275). Primitive campgrounds are first-come, first-serve. Calendar-year limit of 30 days applies.

Roads and Trails: Dirt roads in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park are open to street-legal vehicles only. 

Due to trail conditions, Lower Willows Hiking/Equestrian Trail in Coyote Canyon is closed.
 
Please be aware that the vast majority of dirt roads in the park require four-wheel-drive vehicles!

See ROAD CONDITIONS

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is the largest state park in California. Five hundred miles of dirt roads, 12 wilderness areas and many miles of hiking trails provide visitors with an unparalleled opportunity to experience the wonders of the California Desert. The park is named for Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza and the Spanish word borrego, or bighorn sheep. The park features washes, wildflowers, palm groves, cacti and sweeping vistas. Visitors may also have the chance to see roadrunners, golden eagles, kit foxes, mule deer and bighorn sheep as well as iguanas, chuckwallas and the red diamond rattlesnake. Listening devices for the hearing impaired are available in the visitor center.

The Park is located on the eastern side of San Diego County, with portions extending east into Imperial County and north into Riverside County. It is about a two-hour drive from San Diego, Riverside, and Palm Springs.

Many visitors approach from the east or west via Highways S22 and 78. From the coast, these highways descend from the heights of the Peninsular range of mountains with spectacular views of the great bowl of the Colorado Desert. Highway S2 enters the park from the south off of Interstate 8.

Once in Borrego Springs, the easiest way to find the Visitor Center is to drive to the far west end of Palm Canyon Drive. From the parking lot ($10 fee per car per day), follow the sidewalk down about 200 yards past the flagpole to the front doors of the building, which is hidden, mostly underground!

The 3-mile (roundtrip) Borrego Palm Canyon Trail is accessed from the trailhead at the end of the main campground road ($10 Day-use parking fee). 

Most visitors approach from the east via Highways S22, S2, or 78. Visitors from San Diego via Highways 79 and 78 have the added pleasure of driving through the mountainous Cuyamaca Rancho State Park--quite a different experience from Anza-Borrego. The highways from the east climb to 2,400 feet or so and then descend about 2,000 feet to the valley. Where the highway breaks out of the high-country vegetation, it reveals the great bowl of the Anza-Borrego desert. The valley spreads below, and there are mountains all around. The highest are to the north--the Santa Rosa Mountains. The mountains are a wilderness, with no paved roads in or out or through. They have the only all-year-flowing watercourse in the park. They are the home of the peninsular bighorn sheep, often called desert bighorn. Few park visitors ever see them; the sheep are justly wary. A patient few observers each year see and count them, to learn how this endangered species is coping with human encroachment.

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park® has been named an International Dark Sky Park and the town of Borrego Springs a Dark Sky Community!

This recognition for our efforts in protecting and interpreting the dark skies over the park comes from the International Dark Sky Association (IDA), and will help ensure that dark skies over Anza-Borrego remain an unspoiled resource. Read the Press Release. 

    

The online video journal of the Colorado Desert District covering Anza-Borrego Desert State Park®, Cuyamaca Rancho State Park and Palomar Mountain State Park.

 

 

 


Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Visitor Center Parking Lot-Hours: 7 AM to 7 PM:
Day Use Fee: $10
Senior Day Use (62 or Older): $9
Disabled Discount Day Use: $5 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass

The Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Visitor Center is open to the public 7 days a week from October 1 to May 31.
From June 1 to September 30, the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Visitor Center is open on weekends and holidays only.

Borrego Palm Canyon Campground-Tent Sites:
Tent Site Fees: $35 per night
Senior Tent Site Fee (62 or Older): $33 per night
Disable Discount Tent Site Fee: $17.50 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicles: $10 per day/night

Hike & Bike: $5 per person per night

Borrego Palm Canyon Campground-RV Sites: Full Hook Ups:
RV Hook Up Site Fee: $45 per night
Senior RV Hook Up Site Fee: $43 per night
Disabled Discount RV Hook Up Site Fee: $22.50 per night with State Park Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicles: $10 per day/night

Borrego Palm Canyon Campground-Group Camps 1-5:
Group Camps 1-5: $125 per night


Borrego Palm Canyon Dump Station:
Dump Station Fee: $10
Senior Dump Station Fee (62 or older): $9
Disabled Discount Dump Fee: $5 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass

Dump Station is closed to the public from June 1 to September 30.

Borrego Palm Canyon Trailhead Parking-Hours: Sunrise to Sunset:
Day Use Fee: $10
Senior Day Use (62 or Older): $9
Disabled Discount Day Use: $5 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass

Hellhole Canyon Trailhead Parking-Hours: Sunrise to Sunset:
Day Use Fee: $10
Senior Day Use (62 or Older): $9
Disabled Discount Day Use: $5 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass

Tamarisk Grove Campground:
Tent Site Fee: $35 per night
Senior Tent Site (62 or Older): $33 per night
Disabled Discount Tent Site: $17.50 per night with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night
Maximum RV length: 21 feet (No Hook Ups)

Cabin Site Fee: $70 per night
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night

Hike & Bike: $5 per person per night

Tamarisk Grove Campground is open to the public from October 1 to May 31 and closed to the public from June 1 to September 30.
Reservations can be made through Reserve California

Tamarisk Grove Day Use Parking-Hours: Sunrise to Sunset:
Day Use Fee: $10
Senior Day Use (62 or Older): $9
Disabled Discount Day Use: $5 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass

Vern Whitaker Horse Camp:
Tent/RV Site: $35 per night-2 horse
Senior Tent/RV (62 or Older): $33 per night-2 horse
Disabled Discount Tent/RV Site: $17.50 per night with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night
Day Use: $10 per day/night
Senior Day use (62 or Older): $9
Additional Horses (4 max per site): $5 per day/night

Vern Whitaker Horse Camp is open to the public from October 1 to May 31 and closed to the public from June 1 to September 30.


Slot Canyon Day Use Parking-Hours: Sunrise to Sunset:
Day Use Fee: $10
Senior Day Use (62 or Older): $9
Disabled Discount Day Use: $5 with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass

Bow Willow Campground:
Tent/RV Site: $20 per night
Senior Tent/RV (62 or Older): $18 per night
Disabled Discount Tent/RV Site: $10 per night with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night
Day Use: $10 per day/night
Senior Day use (62 or Older): $9

Mountain Palm Springs Campground:
Tent/RV Site: $20 per night
Senior Tent/RV (62 or Older): $18 per night
Disabled Discount Tent/RV Site: $10 per night with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night
Day Use: $10 per day/night
Senior Day use (62 or Older): $9

Sheep Canyon Campground - Coyote Canyon:
Tent/RV Site: $20 per night
Senior Tent/RV (62 or Older): $18 per night
Disabled Discount Tent/RV Site: $10 per night with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night
Day Use: $10 per day/night
Senior Day use (62 or Older): $9

Sheep Canyon Campground is open to the public from October 1 to May 31 and closed to the public from June 1 to September 30.

Fish Creek Primitive Campground-Fish Creek:
Tent: $20 per night
Senior Tent (62 or Older): $18 per night
Disabled Discount Tent: $10 per night with State Parks Disabled Discount Pass
Extra Vehicle: $10 per day/night

Sunrise Highway Day Use Parking-Hours: Sunrise to Sunset:
Day Use Fee: $10 - Yodel App Only

If you have any questions regarding the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Fee Schedule, please call the Colorado Desert District Office at: 760-767-4037

Additional Visitor Services

  • County of San Diego (Agua Caliente Hot Springs)

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park
Anza- Borrego Desert State Park’s rugged landscape formed largely by the forces of erosion attacking the uplifted mountains. The higher the mountains rise, the more vigorously they are attacked by rain, snow, ice, and wind, as they yield to the constant pull of gravity.

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park
(Photograph by Mike Fuller)

The full Geo Gems report  |  Geological Gems of State Parks

When using map apps., it is best to use Anza Borrego Desert State Park® Visitor Center for directions to the Visitor Center.  Using only Anza-Borrego Desert State Park® in some map apps. may result in directions leading to a dirt, 4 wheel drive road.  more information under 'About Us - Location - Directions'.