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.

Shandel Sutherland • October 30, 2024

In Memory of Arlene Diane Oakes

May 22, 1937 – October 1, 2024

Our beautiful Arlene Oakes passed away on October 1, 2024, at our home in Carson City with her husband, Jack, and their two daughters, Lisa and Linda, by her side.

Arlene and Jack met in 1957 in a geography class at Nevada Southern University, now UNLV, where Arlene was the first student-body president. It was her beautiful smile and blue eyes and her wonderful laugh that brought them together for the next 67 years. They married on a rainy Easter in 1958 in Las Vegas where they grew up. Arlene was born in Los Angeles, California, the only child of Orval and Charlotte Henson. She and Jack had three daughters, Lora, Lisa and Linda. They moved to Carson City in 1963 where Jack was a staff member for the governor. Arlene finished her teaching degree at University of Nevada, Reno and taught elementary school for many years in Carson City. Eventually the family moved to Incline Village where she taught middle school until retiring in 1982 to join Jack and their longtime friends and business partners, the late Gary Sheerin and JoAnn Sheerin, as the bookkeeper for their property investment partnership.

Arlene and Jack loved the outdoors, especially hiking and bicycling. They spent many hours hiking the Sierra’s. They bicycled across the United States, through Western Europe, Alaska and Vietnam. They also traveled the world going to Africa, China, New Zealand and Australia. Arlene always felt that each adventure was more about the people they met than the things they saw.

In 1985, they moved to Smith Valley where Arlene’s love and passion to be an activist took hold. She was a member of Beta Sigma Phi and Soroptimist. She was instrumental in establishing a fun-run fundraiser in the community called the “Coyote Chase” which lasted for 20 years. She loved the mission of bettering the lives of women around the world.

Arlene and Jack began spending their winters in Borrego Springs, California where they could continue hiking, bicycling and enjoying the Anza Borrego Desert with their family and friends. Arlene always said that she had a wonderful life. What she loved the most though was her family. She would say, “We may not be a big family, but we are mighty!” She loved her husband and soulmate, Jack, her three daughters, Lora, Lisa and Linda, eight grandchildren, Kelly Shawn (deceased), Krystin, Jaime, Travis, Garrett, Daniel, Eric and Jenni, and eight great-grandchildren.

We wish you all could have met her. She will always be with us as we say our final goodbye to that beautiful smile and blue eyes and wonderful laugh.

In lieu of flowers, take a hike or a bike ride, smile, laugh and be kind to one another and our planet. She would like that!