Fish Creek Wash

My photo club's monthly event this month was to tour Fish Creek Wash in the Anza-Borrego Desert. Fish Creek had been advertised as a "geological wonderland." After visiting the site on Saturday, it was easy for all of us to see why. Fish Creek is a wash that is dry most of the year. When it rains, though, a creek comes storming down it - strong enough to wear away the center of a mountain. In fact, it cuts right through Split Mountain in the Anza Borrego Desert. When it's dry, like it was on Saturday, we could drive right on the creek bed. The rocky terrain made it impossible to drive unless you had a vehicle with high clearance. We also used only4 wheel drive vehicles, just in case, and had a shovel and carpet, too, for an emergency.

The colorful and bizarrely twisted and holey strata along either side of Fish Creek was fascinating. Rocks and cliffs formed faces to our eyes. We climbed through the holes at Wind Caves, along Fish Creek, and were treated to an outstanding view of elephant knees, far in the distance.

It was a full day affair as we kicked off the trip by stopping for breakfast at Dudley's, picnicked for lunch on the creek bed, and ended with a late afternoon stop for apple pie at Mom's in Julian.