For families, Anza-Borrego offers more than just wildflowers

While May flowers are blooming throughout the United States, the red blooms on the tips of spindly ocotillo plants are the only floral display in the Anza-Borrego Desert. San Diego County’s only desert community, Borrego Springs is comfortably under the radar. Drive down the main road, and you see hotels, restaurants, desert-plant nurseries, a small shopping center and little else. The sculptures are inspired by creatures that roamed this desert millions of years ago, and lure nearly everyone driving along the roads to pull over in a cloud of dust and get out of their cars. A 3-mile hike leads to Borrego Palm Canyon, a watery haven fed by underground springs and shaded by California fan palms. “Tadpoles!” The chubby swimmers are congregating among the algae near the water’s edge. Along Fish Creek (also known as Split Mountain), we walk along the base of hills that were once an ancient seabed and count geological oddities like synclines, anticlines, mud hills, wind caves and a deep cut straight through a mountain range. Borrego Springs is California’s first International Dark Sky Community, having earned the distinction by restricting lights on public streets, outside of businesses and on front porches. Any light pollution caused by the bright cities of Southern California is kept at bay by a high mountain range, and because the town sits smack in the middle of 600,000 acres of undeveloped Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, it’s an ideal place to stargaze. With Borrego Night Sky Tours, astronomer Dennis Mammana offers a personalized tour of the cosmos above Borrego Springs. Observing sites vary, but Mammana typically begins with an overview of the night sky followed by a tour of the 14-inch diameter Dobsonian telescope and the opportunity to see deeper into our Milky Way galaxy and beyond. Instead of joining a group, my family walks a short distance beyond our own hotel, out of reach of any bright lights. Borrego Springs is about 88 miles northwest of San Diego International Airport, and a little more than eight hours from San Francisco via Interstate 5. Mix hotel space with glamping in an Airstream or vintage trailer in this Western-style resort, complete with saloon. Boutique-style hotel with Southwestern feel has only 15 rooms, guaranteeing a relaxed atmosphere. A total of 12 campgrounds are available in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, but it’s also one of the few California parks that allows open camping throughout its 600,000 acres. When the temperature gets hot, go for great Mexican cuisine here, and don’t miss out on the margaritas. Even when the late-afternoon wind is blowing, outdoor dining here is a best bet. Celebrate a special occasion, even your last night in the desert. Guided group excursions in the desert go off-road, so you don’t have to worry about taking your 2WD.