Borrego Springs

History

Anza-Borrego State Park's name is derived from Juan Bautista de Anza, who notably camped there, and "borrego", which is Spanish for "lamb", in honor of the local herds of bighorn sheep. The area east of town was the site of a vast World War II US Navy training center, the Borrego Valley Maneuver Area, with supporting camps and airstrips.

Geography

Borrego Springs is on the floor of the Borrego Valley, which lies at the Sonoran Desert ecoregion's western edge. The village and surrounding countryside have a wide variety of desert flora and fauna. One iconic species found in the Borrego Springs area is the California Fan Palm, Washingtonia filifera, a lower risk/near-threatened species and the only palm native to the western United States. An abandoned calcite mine, dating to World War II, is on the northeast slope of the Santa Rosa Mountains in the state park. Borrego Springs has a dry-summer hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification: BWhs). There are an average of 176.6 days with highs of or higher and an average of only 1.4 days with lows of or lower. The record high temperature was on June 25, 1990. The record low temperature was on January 5, 1971. The average annual precipitation is and there are an average of 22.2 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 1983, with , and the driest was 1953, with . The most rainfall in one month was in January 1993. The most rainfall in 24 hours was on August 17, 1977. Although snow rarely falls in the lowlands, 6.5 inches fell in December 1967.

Largest nearby schools

• Borrego Springs Elementary
  Elementary · Borrego Springs · 154 students · 30.8:1 ratio
• Borrego Springs High
  High · Borrego Springs · 124 students · 13.8:1 ratio
• Borrego Springs Middle
  Middle · Borrego Springs · 80 students · 20:1 ratio