Soft shades of violet are now appearing along Henderson Canyon Road, and with it comes the thought in my mind: Could this be the year for a super bloom in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park?
The Arizona Lupine is a familiar sight during good bloom years, and that gives me hope that there’s more to come. Building on that excitement is what’s in the weather forecast.
Borrego is About to Get More Rain
A storm system is set to bring more rain to Borrego Springs early next week, and I have my fingers crossed (as do many others) that the added moisture will transform the desert into a widespread burst of color, like what we experienced in 2017.
We can only hope. The conditions have to be just right, and it’s impossible to predict exactly what Mother Nature will do. Here’s what she brought us that year:
Seeing the Bloom Through Local Eyes
The 2026 season marks my first year living in Borrego Springs, California, and it’s been amazing to watch the landscape change day by day and week by week. It’s a whole different experience… my husband and I have been watching waves of color stretch further along Henderson Canyon Road (a well-known favorite during wildflower season), and most recently up the hillsides in the distance.
And new blooms are emerging throughout many areas of the park . Here are just a few of the wildflowers we’ve spotted over the past few months:
- Arizona lupine
- Brittlebush
- Brown-eyed primrose
- Common fiddleneck
- Chuparosa
- Desert lily
- Desert sand verbena
- Desert sunflower
- Emory’s rockdaisy
- Evening primrose
- Parish’s poppy
We’re experiencing this as locals for the first time and are completely enamored with it all. My husband and I love the changing scenery, enjoy seeing so many folks come in from out of town to visit, and get excited every time we spot a new variety of flower entering the picture.
This week, it was the Lupine that caught our attention. We’d been spotting them here and there along SR-22 whenever we headed toward the Salton Sea. We were surprised to see them suddenly appear in a big way much closer to home, right along the eastern stretch of Henderson Canyon Road.
Drive the Full Stretch
If you’re coming from out of town, I highly suggest driving the entire stretch of Henderson Canyon Road so you get the full experience. If you stop short and turn around, you might miss something delightful.
Out here, the landscape can change in a matter of days. For the latest bloom updates, bookmark Anza Borrego Foundation’s Wildflower page. And keep checking; if the rains come, we may be on the edge of something spectacular. Even if we aren’t, the desert is already showing us that beauty doesn’t need to arrive all at once to take our breath away. There’s plenty to take in so far this season.
Photographs on this page are a labor of love by Under the Borrego Sky. To respect the work behind the lens, please do not use these images without a quick hello and permission first.
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