How big is Anza-Borrego Desert State Park?

More than 600,000 acres, or roughly 1,000 square miles. It is the largest state park in California and the third largest in the United States, spanning parts of San Diego, Riverside and Imperial counties.

How much does it cost to enter Anza-Borrego?

Day use is $10 per vehicle, collected at the Visitor Center, developed campgrounds and several popular trailheads including The Slot and Hellhole Canyon. The park has no entrance gates and much of it can be accessed without a fee.

When is wildflower season at Anza-Borrego?

Annual wildflowers can appear from January through mid-April, with peak bloom most often between late February and early April. Timing varies year to year based on rainfall and temperature.

Is Anza-Borrego a Dark Sky Park?

Yes. The park was designated an International Dark Sky Park in 2018 at Silver tier. Borrego Springs, the town at its center, has been an International Dark Sky Community since 2009, the first in California.

Do I need four-wheel drive at Anza-Borrego?

Not for the paved roads, the Visitor Center or the main campgrounds. The vast majority of the park's roughly 500 miles of dirt roads do require a high-clearance four-wheel-drive vehicle.

Is Anza-Borrego Desert State Park open at night?

Yes, the park is open 24 hours a day, year-round. The Visitor Center is open daily 9am to 5pm October through May, and weekends and holidays only June through September.

Fr. David Madsen • June 1, 2026

From Church Lane: How Should We Then Live?

By Fr. David Madsen
St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, Borrego Springs

I was reading recently about the largest economies in the world. The United States remains at the top, with China in second place but still far behind. California itself now ranks as the fourth-largest economy globally, having passed Great Britain in 2024 and Japan in 2025. And yet, even with such strength, many Americans feel the strain—wages not keeping up with inflation, the cost of living rising, and homelessness increasing rather than shrinking.

Every day our news cycles swing between political insight and political quarrel. Many say our nation is more polarized than ever. At the same time, we hear constant reports from Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, North Korea, and China. We live in troubled and dangerous times. And tucked beneath the headlines are stories we rarely hear—like the severe drought gripping Kenya, South Sudan, Uganda, and East Africa, or the worsening drought in North Korea, expected to rival the famine of the 1990s.

I don’t share this to paint a picture of doom. I love this country—its freedoms, its history, and those who sacrificed to preserve our democracy. As Winston Churchill said in 1947, “No-one pretends that democracy is perfect… indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except all those other forms that have been tried.”

But as Christians, we face a deeper tension. We are called to follow the teachings of Jesus and the principles of the Kingdom of God, even when the world around us pulls us toward polarized choices. When the values of the gospel collide with the values of the moment, our allegiance belongs to Christ. That isn’t always easy. It isn’t always comfortable. But it is our calling.

So we return to the question: How should we then live?

The prophet Micah gives us our starting point: “What does the Lord require of you? To do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)

We may not all agree on how to carry that out, but we must agree that this is where we begin.

How should we then live? It remains a good question.

Blessings, Father Dave+