Visiting the Park
Day Use Fees ($10 per vehicle) are currently being charged at the following locations:
- Borrego Palm Canyon, Horse Camp and Tamarisk Grove Campgrounds
- Visitor Center Parking Area
- Hellhole Canyon Parking area
- Sheep Canyon, Mountain Palm Springs and Bow Willow Primitive Camps
The Visitor Center
The Visitor Center is open and has some very informative exhibits, plus the award-winning 15-minute film, A Year in the Desert.
Desert Garden
A desert garden just outside the Visitor Center building provides a quick look at some of the vegetation typical of the 600,000-acre park, with the species identified. The garden includes native desert scrub species, many types of cacti, and gorgeous wildflowers in spring.
Wildflowers
There are more wonders in this desert than anyone could see in a lifetime, including wildflowers, which usually start blooming in force in late February or early March. Varieties of cactus bloom at all elevations but at different times, and for wildflower buffs they are the real prize. They tend to be "specimen" blossoms in colors ranging from red to yellow, and green. Other plants, such as the red chuparosa and the yellow brittlebush, show themselves as a mass of tiny flowers covering the surface of a shrub, or even a field of shrubs, or, in a good year, a broad expanse of pink sand verbena. It is often impossible to predict how desert plants will respond to the timing and amounts of rainfall and the fluctuations of temperature.
Pacific Crest Trail
The Pacific Crest Trail is the jewel in the crown of America’s scenic trails, spanning 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada through three western states. The trail passes through five California State Parks: Castle Crags and McArthur-Burney Falls in Northern California; and Silverwood Lake, Anza Borrego Desert and Mt San Jacinto in Southern California. The Pacific Crest Trail Association is an excellent source of information for anyone planning a trip on the PCT.