After a few days over at Organ Pipe National Monument to escape the windstorm that blew through the area, we were back at Anza Borrego Desert State Park, our last stop on our trip South to Spring. Instead of picking up where we left off in Part 1, we headed to the southern part of the park and dove off the pavement and down into Canyon Sin Nombre.
Note: This story is part of a series, South to Spring. Click the link for the related stories, or visit the timeline page for a listing with links to each story.
Almost immediately we were in the rocky narrows of the canyon, and they transitioned after a few miles from the layered bedrock into towering sandstone.
Signs of spring were in every rock crevice and around every corner. The Orcutt’s aster was taking advantage of the recent rains and putting on a show.
We explored a couple side canyons and made a side trip to the mud caves before making our way up the wash to find camp for the night. It is always impressive to me to see a landscape so devoid of water and yet so wholly shaped by it.
As we wandered from camp we spotted a lot of desert lilies, a new arrival on the spring scene. Standing tall with several flowers on a stalk I’d guess the pollinators could see these from a mile away.
The sand verbenas were adding a nice pink accent to the desert as well.
We settled in for the night, enjoying the vastness of the Vallecito wash and the surrounding badlands as the sunset started to put on a show.
