Into the Desert

The world’s major deserts span across different continents and climate zones, each with distinct characteristics. There are hot deserts. The Sahara in North Africa is the largest hot desert, covering much of the northern third of the continent. The Arabian Desert stretches across the Middle East, while the Thar Desert lies between India and Pakistan. In North America, the Sonoran, Chihuahuan, and Mojave deserts cover parts of the southwestern United States and Mexico. Australia’s Great Victoria and Great Sandy deserts dominate much of the continent’s interior. There are cold deserts. The Gobi Desert, spanning Mongolia and northern China, experiences extreme temperature variations between seasons. The Great Basin Desert in the western United States is another cold desert, characterized by high elevation and cold winters. Patagonia’s desert regions in Argentina represent cold, windswept landscapes. And then there are “unique” deserts. The Atacama Desert in Chile is considered the driest place on Earth, with some weather stations never recording rainfall. Antarctica, while covered in ice, is technically the world’s largest desert due to its extremely low precipitation. The Namib Desert along Africa’s southwestern coast is notable for its ancient age and distinctive red sand dunes.

North America has four major desert regions, each with distinct characteristics shaped by geography and climate patterns. The Sonoran Desert, located in southern Arizona, southeastern California, and northwestern Mexico, is North America’s most biodiverse desert. The iconic saguaro cactus defines much of this landscape, along with organ pipe cacti, ocotillo, and palo verde trees. It receives both winter and summer rainfall, supporting a rich variety of plant and animal life including javelinas, Gila monsters, and roadrunners. Part of that is made up of the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, which is California’s largest state park, covering approximately 600,000 acres (about 940 square miles). This makes it roughly the size of Rhode Island. It’s by far the largest, being about six times bigger than the second-largest California state park. Its size is particularly remarkable given that many state parks are measured in hundreds or low thousands of acres. Anza-Borrego ranks as one of the largest state parks in the entire United States, though exact rankings can vary depending on how boundaries and classifications are defined. It’s generally considered to be in the top 5-10 largest state parks nationally. Beyond its size, Anza-Borrego is notable for being one of the few large wilderness areas in Southern California that remains relatively undeveloped. It encompasses diverse desert habitats from below sea level to over 6,000 feet in elevation, including badlands, palm oases, and mountain ranges.

People live in deserts for a variety of historical, economic, and lifestyle reasons that have evolved over time. Many desert communities developed from indigenous populations who adapted to these environments over thousands of years, developing sophisticated water management and agricultural techniques. Mining booms in the 19th and 20th centuries established towns around gold, silver, copper, and other mineral deposits. Military installations during World War II and the Cold War brought people to remote desert areas, with some communities persisting after the military presence ended. Agriculture thrives in desert areas with irrigation, particularly in places like California’s Imperial Valley and Arizona’s Salt River Valley, which produce much of America’s winter vegetables. The aerospace and defense industries established major facilities in desert regions for testing and manufacturing. Tourism and recreation have become major economic drivers, with resort destinations like Palm Springs, Scottsdale, and Las Vegas. Solar energy development is increasingly bringing jobs to sunny desert regions. The dry air provides relief for people with respiratory conditions like asthma and arthritis. Consistent sunshine and low humidity appeal to those seeking escape from harsh winters or humid climates. The clear skies and minimal light pollution attract astronomers and stargazers. Many are drawn to the wide open spaces, dramatic landscapes, and sense of freedom that desert environments provide. Lower population density offers privacy and quiet that’s harder to find in more developed areas. The unique desert aesthetics and outdoor recreation opportunities like hiking, rock climbing, and off-roading attract outdoor enthusiasts.

Today I am riding with two riding buddies out to Borrego Springs. Borrego Springs has a rich history that spans from ancient indigenous settlements to its modern development as a resort destination. The area was originally inhabited by the Cahuilla people, who established seasonal camps around the natural springs and palm oases that gave the valley its life. They developed sophisticated knowledge of desert survival, utilizing the springs for water and harvesting desert plants like agave, mesquite, and palm fruits. Spanish explorers passed through the region in the 18th century, followed by Mexican land grants in the early 1800s. The area became part of larger ranchos, though the harsh desert environment limited permanent settlement. After California statehood in 1850, the region remained largely uninhabited except for occasional prospectors and cattlemen. The challenging desert conditions and isolation kept development minimal through the late 1800s. The modern town began taking shape in the 1920s and 1930s when entrepreneurs recognized the area’s potential as a winter resort destination. The reliable groundwater from underground springs made development feasible. Early residents and developers promoted the healthful benefits of the dry desert climate. The establishment of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in 1933 (expanded over subsequent decades) helped protect the surrounding wilderness while also drawing tourists.

The population of the Anza-Borrego Desert region is quite small, reflecting its remote location and the constraints of desert living. Borrego Springs has approximately 3,000-4,000 residents. The area served as an important crossroads for indigenous trade routes, with Cahuilla, Kumeyaay, and other tribes using the springs and palm oases as seasonal camps and trading posts for centuries. Juan Bautista de Anza (the man depicted in mosaic on my front door) led his famous expedition through the region in 1774-1776, establishing what became known as the Anza Trail. This route became crucial for connecting Spanish settlements in California with those in Arizona and Mexico. The desert and state park are named after him. In the 1850s, the area was surveyed as a potential route for the transcontinental railroad, though the railroad ultimately took a more northern route. In the spring, the region has experienced notable wildflower “super blooms” in years with exceptional rainfall, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors and creating traffic jams in the normally quiet desert. Borrego Springs also became an International Dark Sky Community in 2009, one of the first in the world, recognizing its commitment to preserving natural darkness for astronomical observation.

In the film Lawrence of Arabia, Lawrence is asked why he likes the desert so much and he says in a somewhat glazed-eye manner, “Because its clean.” Well, I am going to the desert today because I need to cleanse my mind, specifically of all the bullshit spewed by Donald Trump at the podium of the General Assembly of the United Nations yesterday. You see, my mother was a UN diplomat for 15 years. She was a Director of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). FAO has achieved significant accomplishments since its founding in 1945. FAO has played a crucial role in combating global hunger, helping reduce the proportion of undernourished people worldwide from about 23% in the early 1990s to around 8-10% today. They’ve been instrumental in the Green Revolution, promoting improved crop varieties and agricultural techniques that dramatically increased food production in many developing countries. Their technical expertise and capacity-building programs have helped countries develop more resilient food systems. The FAO’s early warning systems for food crises have enabled faster humanitarian responses, and their statistical work provides essential data for understanding global food security trends. They’ve made substantial contributions to sustainable agriculture practices, forest conservation efforts, and fisheries management. The organization has also been vital in coordinating international responses to plant and animal diseases that threaten food security. So, to say that I take the UN seriously would be an understatement. Despite the progress by FAO, nearly 800 million people still face chronic hunger in the world. But Donald Trump is too busy complaining about escalators and teleprompters (both of which problems he encountered due to his own staff’s inadequacies) to worry about other people in the world.

So I will do like Lawrence and go seek the means to cleanse my soul as an American for allowing such an idiot and narcissist to sit on the throne of America and lecture the world about what is wrong with it.