Category: Life Under the Borrego Sky

Southern California has been suffering through a heat wave for a while now. I’ve gotten used to the heat in Borrego Springs, but we’ve had a lot of days over 110 degrees this summer. It’s been a bit much, and I’m definitely ready for a break. Fortunately, we’re now hovering around 100 degrees. Which still…

How can you possibly live so far away from everything? That’s a question that has come up in conversation ever since my husband and I moved to the small desert town of Borrego Springs, California, nearly two years ago. I have to laugh sometimes because I don’t think folks realize that it’s not like we’re…

We don’t get much rain here in Borrego Springs, California—less than 7 inches a year, according to the Anza-Borrego Foundation. So when the clouds roll in and bring rain with them, we tend to get excited. Today, Borrego received some light rainfall that came after months of 100+ degree days, and the cool-down was more…

It’s summer here in the desert. The heat has driven out the tourists and part-time residents, leaving just the hardy souls who live here year-round. We hole up in our air-conditioned homes like hibernating bears, emerging only to check the mail, get something at the store, or maybe head towards the ocean to escape the…

We never expected a hummingbird to change us. But then my husband set up a camera near a nest, and our hearts melted a little. Over 50 years on this planet, and neither of us knew much about hummingbirds. We’d never really seen one up close and were fascinated by the meticulous way she fussed…

“We call that the magic tree,” a neighbor told me when we first moved into our new home in Borrego Springs, California. She was an elderly woman who had stopped by during our post-move yard sale. “It’s been there for years and survived every big storm that’s come through here,” she added. At that time,…

The landscape has changed dramatically in Borrego Springs, California, in the past few months. The colorful, sweet-smelling wildflowers and greenery have given way to a dry, dusty brown terrain parched by heat. I thought about that today as my husband and I rode our e-bikes throughout town and on the backroads, getting in some early…

March is usually one of the most pleasant times of year in Borrego Springs,  the sweet spot before the real heat sets in. Early in the month, highs usually hover in the low 80s, gradually warming into the 90s by April.  Not this year. This year, we skipped the gentle ramp-up entirely and jumped straight…