Super Bloom in Borrego Springs

I told Jake I wanted to go to Borrego Springs to see the infamous Super Bloom and last weekend we made the trek out. Laura joined us for the adventure! Maya came along, too. She doesn’t like to be left at home.

We managed to leave my house before 7am and caught a nice glimpse of the sun rising over some fields in Ramona. 

Maya liked seeing the cows. She’d get excited and start whimpering. I imagine it was like the TV coming to life for her! 

The ride to Borrego Springs from my house is about an hour and a half. We encountered a bit of traffic coming down the mountain and right before we go into town. Lots of people were stopping on the side of the road as soon as they got into town. I had no idea why. I barely saw any flowers over here. 

There was a sign saying to go to the Mall for flower information. The Mall is right off this main road so you can’t miss it – it’s literally the only mall in town. 


There was a nice gentleman giving directions on the best place to go for the flowers. Laura had a map with her that her parents got detailing all the different kinds of flowers you might see in the desert. The gentleman directed us to go north of Christmas Circle (the roundabout in the middle of town), past the metal sculptures, and to just try and go as north as possible.

We ended up near some orchards near Nuevo Oso Ranch off Di Giorgio Road. We saw this gorgeous field full of bright yellow flowers! Now this is what I had in mind when I think of “Super Bloom”! 

Maya enjoyed being off leash and romping around in the field. 

Ladybug love in the Super Bloom.

The yellow flowers were the most predominant ones, but you could also see bits of purple and white flowers as well. 

After we got our fill of wildflowers here, we drove back along Henderson Canyon Road to Borrego Springs Road. 

There are some paths through the desert that lead to some metal sculptures and more flowers if you’re willing to go off the beaten path. 

I thought it was funny that there was a fake cactus in the middle of the desert near all the real cactus. 

Laura and I got out of the car to take a few more photos. Look at the pretty pink blooms on this one!

We managed to see a ton of flowers during this super bloom!

Since Laura has never been to the Salton Sea, Jake decided we should go again.

Same old Salton Sea. Same smell. Same totally receded shoreline. 

The chair and boat are still here in the same spot

I didn’t want to go walk out on the squishy land. Jake, Laura and Maya did while I hung back. I saw Jake stumble and I thought he tripped and fell on something but actually his leg got sucked into the ground! He got mud and salt all over his leg. Oh man. He pretty much said after this that he really doesn’t ever want to come back to the Salton Sea. 

As we left the Salton Sea I saw this neat bottle maze.

Not quite finished yet but looking pretty impressive!

On the way back home I wanted to stop at Pine Hill Egg Ranch to get some fresh eggs. 

Such a cute little shop! 

We also stopped in Santa Ysabel for pie from the Julian Pie Company and bread at Dudley’s. 

And…. a little stop for some Dole Whip at Lappert’s Ice Cream in Poway. It was a warm day and we needed a cool treat after spending the day in the desert. 

For dinner that evening, Jake and I went to H Mart and picked up some marinated short ribs and pork belly. I cooked them up on the grill outside. I had to watch the pork belly since the drippings made the flames pop up.

It’s so nice to live in San Diego where you can pretty much BBQ all year long!

The flames that licked the pork belly made it get a little crispy which made it extra delicious. YUM. Good times with family and friends! 


4 thoughts on “Super Bloom in Borrego Springs

  1. Great post Mary! I’ve always wondered about the wildflowers in Anza Borrego. With all of the rains we’ve had, it’s awesome that so many flowers are in bloom now. I read though that a lot of caterpillars will end up eating the flowers though.

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