ANZA-BORREGO DESERT STATE PARK — The California Department of Parks and Recreation is proposing new rules that would bar visitors from venturing off the beaten path in sensitive areas within state parks, including some of the most popular destinations in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in eastern San Diego County.
The change would make it illegal to leave roads and trails in natural and cultural preserves. There are eight cultural preserves in Anza-Borrego where people have been hiking, camping, bird-watching, horseback riding and rock-climbing for decades. The new regulations would also affect parts of Cuyamaca Rancho State Park in San Diego County and other parks throughout the state.
Paige Rogowski, executive director of the nonprofit Anza-Borrego Foundation, said the rule change makes little sense for the largest and most remote desert park in the state.
“Anza-Borrego by design is an open space — there are very few designated trails,” she said. The proposed regulations would restrict access to “a lot of what makes Anza-Borrego great.”
Areas that would be off limits in Borrego include Sheep Canyon, Little Blair Valley, Cougar Canyon, Indian Canyon, Box Canyon, Jackass Flat, Mortero Palms to Goat Canyon, Indian Hill, Smuggler Canyon (Whale Peak) and rock-climbing in Culp Valley.
“In a nutshell, this proposal would make it illegal to leave roads and trails … that means people could no longer climb around on rocks or walk up a wash, canyon, or ridge in any of our eight cultural preserves,” a statement released by the foundation said.
State officials say the proposed regulations would protect sensitive natural and cultural resources within the state park system, while continuing to provide limited and appropriate public access to the areas. Cross-country hiking, bicycling, horseback riding or other off-trail uses can cause significant damage to the sensitive resources the areas were set aside to protect.
In the California parks system, there are approximately 16 areas designated as state natural reserves, 61 natural preserves, and 23 cultural preserves. Read More