It was hot in the desert in mid-Aug, getting well above 100o F. Camping in Anza is open, so all you need to do is find a spot. We drove just beyond Borrego Valley Rd. and parked on a small side road with access to the canyon. The hike to the slot canyons took about an hour and be brought plenty of water. However, we brought all frozen bottles, and it melted slowly enough that we were squeezing the bottles to melt the ice. Slot canyons are deep scars in the otherwise flat desert, where the feedback of erosion, transport and routing of rainwater produces an unique geological feature. Hiking in the canyons is somewhat claustrophobic and if you imagine the torrent or floodwater during a cloud burst you may get a little scared.

We hiked down the length of the canyons, and then back up towards our car. Due to the ambiguity of the terrain, we completely walked past our location of entrance until Michele decided “we’re lost”. We back-tracked, and were encountered by two guys who had been lost for over an hour and were clearly borderline panicking. They had parked their truck out of view, and were just wandering. We knew we were close to the entrance and readily found the exit and indicated to the two lost souls that we found their car.

After hiking the canyons, we spent a few hours at Borrego Springs oasis to re-hydrate (and “wash up”) and cool off before the evening. Then headed back out the the flatland to set up shop for the evening. It was real windy, so we had to secure the tent and set up the grill right next to the Prius. A few strawberritas and chicken parts later and we were officially stargazing. Even though the meteor show wasn’t particularly spectacular, the clearly visible Milky Way provided enough humility. All together a great day/night in the desert. The next morning was less friendly... dehydrated and feeling the 90F+ heat by the time we woke up proved difficult to handle. The drive home was marred with the effects of the heat + motion sickness to make it a riotous good time. We arrived at the home condo around 10am and, literally, did not move for the rest of the day and just drank water.