Old Culp Valley Road

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5/5 (3 reviews)
Borrego Springs, California (San Diego County)
Last Updated: 05/08/2019

Trail Information

Highlights

This short but interesting trail is what remains of the old route through Culp Valley on the mountainous western edge of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. Culp Valley was home to a fairly large Cahuilla village, and a few Cahuilla dwellings remained into the 1900's. It also became home to a handful of homesteader families who ran cattle in the valley. Remnants of one of these homesites, settled by the Paroli family, can still be seen.

Trail Difficulty and Assessment

Trail Navigation

Trail Reviews

5/5 (3)
Open
Rated 5/5
Visited: 03/29/2023
Difficulty Accuracy: Easier

Beautiful spring day today with a super bloom imminent. Found it br accident and enjoyed the solitude.
Open
Visited: 12/25/2020

We live in nearby Borrego Springs and this is one of our favorite trails, especially when we have visitors who maybe aren't ready for anything too terrifying. It's beautiful and takes you through a variety of chaparral scenery, from flat heaths with mountains in the distance to some pretty big-boulder country. There are plenty of nice picnic spots with good views too. The trail had been quite rutted and washed-out here and there, but we ran it for fun on Christmas Day and it had just been graded - they almost took the fun out of it, it was so easy . . . that is, right up until you enter the Native American cultural area. From there on, the road is still rutted, and there are a few tight squeezes -- nothing to worry about in a 4WD, but I wonder about anyone in a Prius kind of suddenly getting suckered into a scary situation.
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Official Crew
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14500
Open
Rated 5/5
Visited: 11/14/2020

Not a whole lot to see at the home site (as the trail guide said) but it was interesting finding a ground spring nearby with many animal trails leading up to it. Trail was pretty easy but did seem like it was a little washed out from recent rains.
Trail Review: Old Culp Valley Road - Taylor Kempkes

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