Overlapping San Diego and Imperial Counties nestled between Anza Borrego Desert State Park and the Salton Sea is the Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area; an 85,000-acre playground for off-road enthusiasts. Some of the popular attractions in the park are Truckhaven, the 4x4 Training Area, the Badlands, Pumpkin Patch, Shell Reef, Devil's Slide, and Blowsand Hill among many others. There is a network of dirt trails and washes that sprawl throughout the park. The main trails are marked with street signs at every intersection, and trail markers at every 1/10th mile. Please use caution while traveling through the park keeping mindful that other vehicles (such as dirt bikes, quads, and buggys) can be zipping through.
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Take the S-22 freeway to Cross Over Trail which is less than 1/2 mile west of the Ocotillo Wells SVRA 4x4 Training Area.
Cross Over Trail is located on the south side of S-22 at 25 miles east of Borrego Springs via Palm Canyon Drive, and 5 miles west from the 86 freeway via Borrego Salton Seaway. (Coordinates: 33.26600, -116.01885)
After turning onto Cross Over Trail, continue southwest approximately 1/4 mile through a large primitive camp area.
There is a small building on the left with vaulted toilets, and a fenced dumpster area. (Coordinates: 33.26448, -116.02284)
It may be a good idea to use the restrooms while here as there are no others along the trail. You can also air down your tires at this location.
Continue another 200 feet and you will reach the intersection of Cross Over Trail and Tectonic Gorge.
(Coordinates: 33.26452, -116.02375)
Very fun & rewarding trail when visiting the Borrego Springs area. Softroaders should be fine (if you are adventurous), although higher clearance and tougher tires will help. Rocky sections at times might put road tires at risk--pay attention to where you're putting your tires. Deep sand in places and some very tight turns--full size trucks will have to navigate those turns with care. Lots of cool stuff to get out an look at along the way. Great for families.
The trail starts off on the plain and I was thinking, "where does the gorge start?? This doesn't look like the pictures!" It takes about seven minutes of driving before you drop in--that's where the fun begins.
It takes less than an hour to transit the length of the gorge--it took me about 45 minutes.
Begin a newbie this was just about the perfect trail, just the kind on why I got an offroad vehicle. Some soft sand so would suggest airing down, and now that we are entering summer season would most definitely suggest checking out the weather in advance.
Fun trail!!! Starts off mellow then gets really fun when you get deep into the canyon! It's like a slalom course... came across a few SXS & dirt bikers so keep your ears open for oncoming traffic on blind switchbacks. Deep sand here and there, couple of rocky sections but nothing a stock 4x4 can't handle! As a big X-FIles fan this was an awesome little trail to visit before we ended our vacation in Borrego Springs!
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I am a southern California native and an outdoors wanderer with a passion for camping, exploring new trails, and seeking interesting sites that are only accessible off paved roads. While traveling to remote areas presents unique challenges and risk, finding solutions and adapting to unforeseen crisis is part of my enjoyment. Perhaps my stint in the scouts and marines have helped prepare me for this endeavor. Every trip is a learning experience, as I test myself, my gear, and my rig. My mantras are, Build, break, fix, repeat!" and "We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us.". Since my kids are grown and off to college, I'm able to get out more often. Overlanding is how I roll, with occasional "mild" rock crawling. My bucket list trip is a Pan American expedition from Alaska to Argentina. In the meantime, I've been roaming the deserts and mountains of SoCal, Baja, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. Joining TrailsOffroad was an inevitable decision, and I look forward to contributing to this platform.
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