This is one of those rare parks that is actually a resort but it is out in the middle of nowhere. Sharon enjoyed the gym whereas I spent time at the pool and spa However it was also close enough for us to take a scenic drive to see one of my bucket list items… the Galleta Meadows Estates. Galleta Meadows Estates is home to some 130 metal art sculptures located in and around Borrego Springs. A land owner, the late Dennis Avery, “…envisioned the idea of adding free standing art to his property” and had artist/welder Ricardo Breceda create some magnificent original steel welded sculptures. This is an art exhibit you simply have to see to believe!
The sculptures are both to the south of Borrego Springs and to its north. We picked up a guide at the Visitor Center in town. There are dirt roads (some more like trails) carved out of the desert which lead to each of the really cool metallic pieces of art. Ricardo Breceda created pieces that mostly were renditions of creatures that had lived in the area some 3 million years ago during the Plio-Pleistocene age. However not all the pieces are of extinct creatures from the past as he also created pieces that represented the local history and others that … well… seemed to us to have been designed by someone on hallucinogenic drugs… I think you have to see them to better understand.
There are sculptures of wild horses, dinosaurs, camels, tapirs, sloths, saber-toothed cats, mammoths, raptors, wild pigs and tortoises all of which appear to be natural in their high desert habitat. The absolute coolest one of all and the marquis piece is that of a 350-foot serpent that spans across the paved highway going through the north side of town. Other really cool ones to us were the scorpion and the grasshopper and I also loved the full sized Willys Jeep CJ-3A. I included a lot of pictures and recommend this place a must see place for art lovers… It was just another fun day on the Road of Retirement…
Thanks for sharing Galleta Meadow Estates, we're always looking for something new to see in our travels and this sounds like fun. Is it possible to walk from one sculpture to the next?
ReplyDeleteYou can certainly walk to many of them as they are mostly in bunches but there are two large groups some 5 miles or so apart..
DeleteWe were there a few years ago and really enjoyed the area, saw all the sculptures too. Boondocked just outside of town and loved it. Will be back again this winter to explore some more and take a rip to Julian to check out the pies they are famous for.
ReplyDeletewe stopped in Julian on the way back and I must admit they have more pie shops per capita than anywhere else I have ever been!
DeleteI am so excited to see Galleta Meadows Estates. It is on our list when we get to that area in late January.
ReplyDeletescratched it off my bucket list but will revisit when back in the area... a must see!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a fun area. We discovered Anza Borrego SP and these marvelous sculptures during our last trip west two years ago. Have you hiked in Anza Borrego yet? There are so many great hikes. We are returning for a few weeks mid Jan.
ReplyDeleteHow long will you be in Mission Bay? We arrive Dec 15 for a month. It would be so nice to finally meet up.
we will be here till Jan 3rd, our daughter will fly in to see us on Dec 11th = looks like we will finally be in the same place at the same time
DeleteSounds great! We seem to enjoy similar hikes so it will be great to catch up and compare notes. Our daughter arrives the 25th for a week. Looking forward to meeting up in person:) See you the 15th of Dec.
DeleteVery cool sculptures!
ReplyDeleteWe got stuck in the sand on one of the trails. There were two couples in the car that was trailing us, and they thanked us nicely for warning them of the soft patch of sand so that it didn't happen to them. Then the two guys helped us pick up the front of the car and back it out. It was at that point that we decided to trade in the Hyundai Accent on a Jeep. We also visited the sculptor's studio near Temecula, where you can see many more wonderful creations.
ReplyDeleteThere's also a small herd of metal horses that look like they're jumping over a road in the area. While we were there, there was a big windstorm that blew down the lead jumping horse. It looked so forlorn laying there, but someone (the sculptor?) put it back up in a day or two.