Borrego Mountain Loop

This loop route will take you through the center of Borrego Mountain which is made up of the West and East Buttes.  The area consists of varied desert terrain and landscapes. 

The trip explained in this chapter can be incorporated into the attractions covered in two other chapters.  They are The Slot and Hills of the Moon.  Taking in the sites covered in all three of these chapters can result in a whole day’s worth of desert exploring.

The first part of the loop passes through a gradually sloping desert plain studded with ocotillos.  The road branches to the right and goes over Butte Pass which is a saddle between the West and East Buttes.  You’ll pass by Hawk Canyon which is a worthy side trip with its scenic, sculptured red cliffs.  The road continues down the back (east) side of Borrego Mountain and down Buttes Canyon with its patches of carved sand and mudstones, giving you an idea of the material that makes up Borrego Mountain.

The road ends at San Felipe Wash where our route turns right.  You will now be traveling in San Felipe Wash. 

San Felipe Wash is a major drainage for all the major mountains of eastern Anza-Borrego. The bottom of the wash is scattered with vegetation, such as smoke trees, that thrive in very wet areas.  Depending on the time of year, you may experience mud or even water in the wash.

In a short distance, our route turns right again and heads south up Blowsand Canyon.  Again, you will pass through a canyon with sculpted mudstones but this canyon has something different.  Next to the road are several unique “climbing dunes” where sand is constantly being blown up the sides of the mountain (see What To Know).  These dunes are what give the canyon its name.

The road climbs out of the canyon and, near the top, look for the road and sign pointing to the Goat Trail.  This road name is obviously taken from the mountain goats (Borrego) that you’d expect to see on a trail like this.  The Goat Trail follows the ridge line of Borrego Mountain and offers great views in all directions.  Late in the day, the light from the setting sun on the distant Borrego Badlands are striking.

You will need a high clearance, 4WD vehicle for this trip.  Because you’ll be driving in a wash, you may encounter sections of deep sand and/or mud.  Before starting on this trip, you should assess the weather conditions.  If there are thunderstorms in the area or there has been significant rain recently, just take this trip some other time.  It is not safe to drive (or hike) in a wash with thunderstorms threatening and recent rains could make the route impassable.

Start your trip at Christmas Circle in the center of Borrego Springs.  Reset your odometer to zero and go south on Borrego Springs Road (Hwy S3) for 5.1 miles.  When Hwy S3 bears right, continue straight ahead.  In 11.5 miles, the road will end and T into Hwy 78.  Turn left.

The turn-off for the dirt Buttes Pass Road is located 13.1 miles east of Borrego Springs Road, on the left side.  If you’re coming from Ocotillo Wells Ranger Station and Headquarters, go west on Hwy 78 for 3.0 miles.  The turn-off is then on the right.

Be aware that this turn-off is easily missed.  Every time we’ve used this road, we’ve passed by it and had to turn around.  Since traffic on Hwy 78 moves fast, take special care if you have to turn around like we did.  At the turn-off there is a small sign just off the pavement that reads Buttes Pass.

After traveling a mile from the pavement, a fork in the road is reached.  Going straight takes you a short distance to the The Slot.  Go here first if you want to spend a few hours on this very popular hike.  Bear right at the fork to continue our loop. 

From that fork, the road heads northeast and reaches a summit named Buttes Pass.  After this point, it descends steeply into Buttes Canyon.  In the far distance you’ll see the Borrego Badlands.  Just ahead and on the left, you’ll see a sharply eroded canyon.  This is Hawk Canyon and is a short, up and back side trip. 

Turn left onto the road signed Hawk Canyon.  Hawk Canyon is known for its geology, flora and birdlife and is well worth exploring.  The canyon gets increasingly narrow and the road ends.  When you’re done looking around, go back to Buttes Pass Road and continue the trip.

As you continue down Buttes Canyon, the road gradually descends the east slope of Borrego Mountain.  After about 1.5 miles from Hawk Canyon and about 2.5 miles from the fork in the road that went to The Slot, Buttes Pass Road ends at San Felipe Wash.

At San Felipe Wash, turn left to take the Hills of the Moon side trip.  Give yourself 2-3 hours to take in this side trip.  Turn right to continue our loop route through Borrego Mountain.

Take care when driving in the San Felipe Wash because of potentially deep sand and mud.  You only have to drive it for half a mile.  Try to follow previous tracks as they are usually the safest choice.

At the half mile mark from Buttes Pass Road, look for the obvious road heading right, back towards Borrego Mountain.  This goes to Blowsand Canyon and is the continuation of our route.

The road turns due south and starts heading into Blowsand Canyon.  Before starting up the canyon, be aware that in the upper-end of the canyon, the road goes through deep sand and is at a fairly steep incline.  Make sure your 4WD is engaged and that your tires are capable of gripping the loose sand.  Some tips for driving in the sand:  lowering your tire’s air pressure will help with traction in deep sand and, before starting up the hill, get some good forward momentum going and try to maintain it. 

As you get to the top of the canyon, look for a road that turns to the right and leads to the top of a ridge.  This is Goat Trail.  Once at the top, bear right and follow Goat Trail along the ridge.

Goat Trail continues to climb and then descend over each mountain ridge along the way.  It finally ends on the road we drove in on from Hwy 78.  Turn left to return to the pavement.

Borrego Mountain is comprised of two “buttes” or summits – East Butte and West Butte.  The small mountain range was caused by compression from the highly active San Jacinto Fault Zone. 

On Borrego Mountain’s east side, the Coyote Creek Fault runs in a straight line to the northwest, up the canyon of the fault’s namesake – Coyote Canyon.  Coyote Creek Fault is basically an extension of the San Jacinto Fault which originates near the Cajon Pass in the San Bernardino Mountains.  Other faults along Borrego Mountain’s west side pressed up against the Coyote Creek Fault and forced the land up creating the mountains you see today.

The Borrego Mountain earthquake of April 9, 1968, registered 6.5 on the Richter Scale and left a sizeable scarp on the east side of the mountain that has since eroded away.

Hawk Canyon is notable for its plants, geology and birds, especially the one bird it was named after.  The canyon cuts a long swath into the middle of West Butte where hawks are known to nest in the cliffs of the canyon’s west (left) side.

When you drive up Hawk Canyon, you’ll be amazed at the beautiful, salmon-colored, sculpted cliffs.  These cliffs, on the left (west) side of the canyon, look like they could be the eroded remnants of a large scarp from one or more massive, ancient earthquakes. 

Visiting Hawk Canyon in the late winter or early spring can be very rewarding with wildflowers.  It was on the slopes of this canyon (below the possible scarp) where we saw the largest lupine bloom we’ve ever seen.

As mentioned above, Blowsand Canyon has a unique geological feature known as a “climbing dune”.  Typical sand dunes are created on flat surfaces but, when conditions are right, wind-blown sand will be pushed up the slopes of hills to create these climbing dunes.  Good examples are seen in the narrow portion of Blowsand Canyon, about 0.5 to 0.8 miles in from San Felipe Wash.