Palm Canyon

Borrego Springs is a cute little town, and when we checked out their two grocery stores we found one which even carried organic fruits and vegetables and several things in brands I usually get! It was like having a health food store selection sprinkled in amidst the usual fare. It’s always fun to see the differences one sees regionally. We also bought postcards and postcard stamps so we could send them to the grandkids, which then grew into sending them to others in lieu of our usual Christmas Letter.

We also visited the library, a very nice one, too, and several shops that were interesting and fun to browse through. With Borrego Springs Outfitters, we found more desert-appropriate hats, so added those to our collection.

Lots of large boulders on this hike.

The Park Visitor’s Center is on the west side of town (we were to the east of town) and well worth the visit. We got to see a short video on seasons in the desert. I enjoyed this since I don't plan to be here for some of those seasons--like summer where it can be over 124 degrees! They also had bird experts there so I was able to ask about the bird we saw at Big Morongo Canyon Preserve and get it identified. We also asked about the best route to take our RV over the mountains and go some good advice.

We then we went on the hike up Palm Canyon. What a beautiful hike, but seemed much longer that the mile and a half they advertised. We wondered if it was as the crow flies, since the trail wound back and forth quite a bit and by the time we got back to the truck we felt we’d been on quite a trek! They warn you to take a gallon of water per person. I had a quart that we shared, and by the time we returned I understood the wisdom of that advice. Even though it was a cool day, the area is so arid and the climb challenging enough that I sure would not want to do this on a hotter day! I clearly need to get a backpack of some sort for stripping down layers and carrying more water. Still it was worth the climb past huge boulders, over all kinds of rocks and finally to the oasis with running water and many huge palm trees. 
 

At the top of the canyon where the palm tree are, there is a lovely spring and creek that goes for a little ways, feeding the trees and other plants that grow around it.



The palms at the oasis were huge!