Anza-Borrego North: Ella Wash

Borrego Badlands from Ella Wash

Ella Wash drains the conglomeration of Santa Rosa Mountain canyons known as Coachwhip Canyon. Some 16 miles east of Borrego Springs, the wash crosses the Borrego-Salton Seaway (County Road S-22) and heads toward the Borrego Badlands. It is this stretch of the wash that we think of as Ella Wash.

It is about a mile and a half from the Borrego-Salton Seaway to Palo Verde Wash at the Borrego Badlands, making Ella Wash a good place for easy hikes and exploring. Sand in the wash, both in the road and beside it, can be deep. Four-wheel drive is strongly recommended.

The badlands are before you on the way down, the mountains on the way up. The Arroyo Salado Campground is a short distance east of Ella Wash at the highway.

Toward the Borrego Badlands