San Diego's Weekend Driver

Visit Font’s Point in the Anza Borrego Desert State Park, near San Diego, in a 2013 V6 AWD Chevrolet Equinox.

I’m out in the Anza Borrego Desert State Park this weekend to test a Chevy Equinox awd on a few sandy roads. Headed to Fonts Point, a beautiful overlook in the Borrego Badlands. Shouldn’t be much of a challenge for the equinox, which was a pretty good performer on the mountain roads between the desert [...]

Have a flat tire in the middle of the desert with a Mercedes-Benz SL 350.

Just before hitting the state line with Arizona is one of the more spectacular features in California, the Algodones Dunes. Traversing the eastern edge of the dunes is one of the more lonely highways around, Ogilby Road, a great cruise whether you’re on a Harley, in a classic car or modern SUV.

It’s been a wet winter, which means our local desert is ready for a show. And for all of you with all-wheel-drive SUVs, its time to exercise those transfer cases. Spring in the desert, especially in rainy years such as this one, means the usual grays and reds of the sand and hills are accented [...]

Rocky trail cuts through west corner of state park Generally, I do a bit of research before heading out on one of these drives. I break out the maps, check the web and have a general idea of the roads I’m looking to experience. But for this trip, I decided to do what most folks [...]

Rocky Road Pushes Grocery-Getter SUV To The Limit From January 2008 The Rocky Mountains are in Colorado, but for rocky mountains, nothing beats the piles of pink boulders in the southeastern corner of San Diego County. Looming in drivers’ windshields as they head towards the Imperial Valley, Interstate 8 winds through them. First comes Walker [...]

Green SUV Up To Task On Easy Anza-Borrego Roads From December 2006 Coyote Canyon, in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, has enough history to fill a book. It’s the stuff of controversy, human civilization, geology, plant and animal life, and convenience. It’s also a good place for city-dwelling desert newbies to get a little off-road [...]

I have to admit, I can’t resist squiggly lines on a map. I also have a soft spot for old, goofy comedy movies. So when there’s a chance to combine both, what’s there to keep me at home? Well, this combination is about 140 miles away and runs from Palm Desert to Banning in Riverside [...]

A beautiful place with no name in Anza-Borrego Desert Note: I took this trip in March, 2005. Be sure to check with the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park ranger for current road conditions. Canyon Sin Nombre video ne thing about a year with heavy rains in San Diego… it means the desert to the east comes [...]