Anza-Borrego Desert State Park California

Tamarisk Grove Region

Overview | Vistor Center | Points of Interest | Where to Stay | Maps and Weather
Videos | Things to Do - ABDSP | Park History

Tamarisk Grove Campgrounds is full-featured with an office providing brochures, maps and information about the park. This mountainous area along the western edge of Anza Borrego park is also regarded as the western edge of the Colorado Desert. This is a starting point for both Yaqui Well Trail and Cactus Loop Trail. Cactus Loop Trail offers 7 different types of cacti, as well as Chuckwallas and other lizards.

Yaqui Well is actually a seep surrounded by Mesquite trees. It is renowned for its bird watching and features Costas Hummingbirds, Phainopepla, owls and doves.

Most of the roads in this region are less than 5 miles long and follow washes that cut into the Pinyon and Vallecito Mountains. These canyons are popular among ambitious hikers through the wilderness of the Vallecitos.

About two miles up Mine Canyon Wash Road is a Kumeyaay winter village site, replete with bedrock mortars which were used to grind foodstuffs by this nomadic band of Native Americans. This area still makes a good spot for a picnic.

The scenic Jasper Trail -- good for mountain bikes and off-road vehicles -- begins near the town of Ranchjita, south from County Road S-22. It descends into Grapevine Canyon, between Pinyon Ridge and Grapevine Mountain, offering many vista points as well as stops at Angelina and Stuart Springs. In the late spring, a medley of chaparral wildflowers like Baby Blue Eyes, Goldfields and Creamcups bloom along Jasper and Old Culp Valley Roads.

With more than 600,000 acres, Anza Borrego Desert State Park, has 7 unique areas that you can explore.

 Anza /Visitor Center Area | Blair Valley Area | Borrego Badlands Area
Bow Willow Area | Fish Creek Area  | Santa Rosa Area | Tamarisk Grove Area
Things to Do in the park | Park History

 

 

 

 

Related DesertUSA Pages

• How to Turn Your Smartphone into a Survival Tool
  
• 26 Tips for Surviving in the Desert
  
• Death by GPS
  
• 7 Smartphone Apps to Improve Your Camping Experience
• Maps Parks and More
• Desert Survival Skills
• How to Keep Ice Cold in the Desert
  
• Desert Rocks, Minerals & Geology Index
• Preparing an Emergency Survival Kit
• Get the Best Hotel and Motel Rates
  

 

The Desert Environment
The North American Deserts
Desert Geological Terms