The Chesslers are all together in San Diego for the holidays, so at the last minute we decided to go the desert for Christmas Eve and Christmas day. Anza Borrego and Borrego Springs are about an hour forty from San Diego, with a pass through Julian, the mountain town known for its pie (of which we did not indulge).
We checked into the historic hotel La Casa Del Zorro (highly recommend), decorated with Santas and elves amidst the cacti, and then did some offroading in Samuel's SUV.
We started with a visit to an old Kumeeyay Indian camp, which still has the rocks used for grinding down native plants. Here you see Samuel investigating the grinding holes.
Then it was off to Palm Spring. Note the singular of that name. Palm Spring was an oasis stop for travelers for over a hundred years. Now it's mostly a historical plaque. The verdant oasis of years ago seems long gone, just a few green shrubs and three dying palms. I refer you to Palm Springs plural for more verdant gardens. But keep in my mind we are in state park, untroubled by artificial irrigation.
After a lunch break somewhat sheltered from the wind, we then ventured further to a long canyon surrounded by large mud hills, with just a few brave mesquite trees and shrubs to break up the brown. This is an offroad fun festival, if you drive slowly and avoid the hidden rocks! We exited the canyon just as the sun set.
After a delish Christmas Eve dinner at La Casa Del Zorro, Samuel set up his fancy new telescope outside our of our casita. The Anza Borrego desert is well known by astronomers for its dark skies. You can imagine what it was like for ancient humans looking up to the firmament. A hotel employee saw our telescope and arranged for more lights to be shut off so we could really stargaze.
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