Anza-Borrego summer closures restrict camps, trails, and Coyote Canyon access
Summer closures are back across Anza-Borrego, shutting Coyote Canyon, Tamarisk Grove, Vern Whitaker Horse Camp and key Borrego Palm Canyon sites through Sept. 30.
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park’s summer closure list can derail a desert weekend before you leave the pavement: Coyote Canyon is closed from Lower Willows in San Diego County to the northern park boundary in Riverside County, and Borrego Palm Canyon has multiple campsites and group sites shut down. The seasonal restrictions run June 1 through September 30, and the park’s restrictions page was last checked July 20 at 8:58 a.m.
The closures hit the places people use to stage hikes, horse trips and backcountry-style overnights. Vern Whitaker Horse Camp is closed, Tamarisk Grove Campground is closed, and Borrego Palm Canyon tent sites 54-89, 90-99 and 111-115 are off limits. Borrego Palm Canyon Group Sites G 1-5 and the Hike & Bike area are closed too, which narrows the legal overnight options in one of the park’s most popular corridors.
Coyote Canyon is the biggest access change for off-road travelers. Anza-Borrego Foundation says the Coyote Canyon Wilderness Area has continued to be closed to all vehicles beyond the closure gate, just before the “Third Crossing,” because of lingering storm damage from Tropical Storm Hilary. The foundation describes Hilary as a very rare tropical storm in California that brought significant rainfall to the region, and that damage helps explain why some routes have stayed restricted beyond the normal summer pattern.
The park is managing more than heat. Anza-Borrego Foundation describes Anza-Borrego Desert State Park as California’s largest state park, at 650,000 acres, and notes that it is home to the endangered Peninsular bighorn sheep. That mix of fragile habitat, wash crossings and desert heat is exactly why the summer restrictions matter when you are trying to thread together a route, a campsite and a trail day in July or August.
The visitor center is still part of the trip, but only on weekends and holidays during the seasonal closure period. A California State Parks magazine source places it at 200 Palm Canyon Drive in Borrego Springs, where the Anza-Borrego Foundation also runs the Visitor Center Store and the State Park Store in The Mall as the park’s nonprofit partner. If you are heading into Borrego with a campsite plan or a Coyote Canyon run in mind, this is the season to verify the latest access before you commit to the drive.
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