Colorado Desert in the context of "Southern California"

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park (/ˈænzə bəˈreɪɡoʊ/, AN-zə bə-RAY-goh) is a California State Park located within the Colorado Desert of Southern California, United States. Created in 1932, the park takes its name from 18th century Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza and borrego, a Spanish word for sheep. With 650,000 acres (260,000 ha) that includes one-fifth of San Diego County, it is the largest state park in California and the third largest state park nationally.

The park occupies eastern San Diego County and reaches into Imperial and Riverside counties, enveloping two communities: Borrego Springs, which is home to the park's headquarters, and Shelter Valley.

California is a U.S. state on the western coast of North America. Covering an area of 163,696 sq mi (423,970 km), California is among the most geographically diverse states. The Sierra Nevada, the fertile farmlands of the Central Valley, and the arid Mojave Desert of the south are some of the geographic features of this U.S. state. It is home to some of the world's most exceptional trees: the tallest (coast redwood), most massive (Giant Sequoia), and oldest (bristlecone pine). It is also home to both the highest (Mount Whitney) and lowest (Death Valley) points in the 48 contiguous states.

The state is generally divided into Northern and Southern California, although the boundary between the two is not well defined. San Francisco is decidedly a Northern California city and Los Angeles is a Southern California one but areas in between do not often share their confidence in geographic identity. The US Geological Survey defines the geographic center of California about 7.1 miles (11.4 km) driving distance from the United States Forest Service office in the community of North Fork. Earth scientists typically divide the state into eleven geomorphic provinces with clearly defined boundaries. They are, from north to south, the Klamath Mountains, the Cascade Range, the Modoc Plateau, the Basin and Range, the Coast Ranges, the Central Valley, the Sierra Nevada, the Transverse Ranges, the Mojave Desert, the Peninsular Ranges, and the Colorado Desert.

Joshua Tree National Park is a US National Park located in southeastern California, straddling north-central Riverside County and part of southern San Bernardino County. Named after the endemic Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia), found in the park and surrounding areas, Joshua Tree is situated some 130 miles (211 km) east of the city of Los Angeles and roughly 78 mi (125 km) east of the city of San Bernardino. Among some of the closest cities to the park are Indio, Palm Desert, and Palm Springs. Originally declared a national monument in 1936, Joshua Tree was redesignated as a national park in 1994 when the U.S. Congress passed the California Desert Protection Act.

Encompassing a total area of 795,156 acres (1,242.4 sq mi; 3,217.9 km)—slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island—the park features 429,690 acres (671.4 sq mi; 1,738.9 km) of designated wilderness. The park encompasses portions of two deserts, each a unique ecosystem with characteristics determined primarily by elevation—the higher Mojave Desert and the lower-lying Colorado Desert. The Little San Bernardino Mountains line the park's southwest edge.

The Coachella Valley (/koʊˈtʃɛlə, ˌkoʊ.ə-/ koh-CHEL-ə, KOH-ə-) is an arid rift valley in the Colorado Desert of Southern California in Riverside County. The valley has been referred to as Greater Palm Springs and occasionally the Palm Springs Area due to the historic prominence of the city of Palm Springs. The valley extends approximately 45 mi (72 km) southeast from the San Gorgonio Pass to the northern shore of the Salton Sea and the neighboring Imperial Valley, and is approximately 15 mi (24 km) wide along most of its length. It is bounded on the northeast by the San Bernardino and Little San Bernardino Mountains, and on the southwest by the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa Mountains.

The Coachella Valley is notable as the location of several wintertime resort cities that have become popular destinations for full time retirees and seasonal residents known as snowbirds. The valley is also known for a number of annual events, including the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, the Stagecoach Country Music Festival, and the Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival, all held in Indio. Other events include the Palm Springs Modernism Week, Palm Springs International Film Festival, the ANA Inspiration and Desert Classic golf tournaments, and the Indian Wells Open tennis tournament.

The Transverse Ranges are a group of mountain ranges of Southern California, in the Pacific Coast Ranges physiographic region in North America. The Transverse Ranges begin at the southern end of the California Coast Ranges and lie within Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside and Kern counties. The Peninsular Ranges lie to the south. The name is due to the ranges' east–west orientation, making them transverse to the general northwest–southeast orientation of most of California's coastal mountains.

The ranges extend from west of Point Conception eastward approximately 500 kilometers into the Mojave and Colorado Desert. The geology and topography of the ranges express three distinct segments that have contrasting elevations, rock types, and vegetation. The western segment extends to the San Gabriel Mountains and San Gabriel fault. The central segment includes mountains that range eastward to the San Andreas fault. The eastern segment extends from the Cajon Pass at the San Andreas fault eastward to the Colorado Desert. The central and eastern segments (near the San Andreas fault) have the highest elevations.

Indio (Spanish for "Indian") is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the Coachella Valley of Southern California's Colorado Desert region. Indio is approximately 125 miles (201 km) east of Los Angeles, 23 miles (37 km) east of Palm Springs, and 98 miles (158 km) west of Blythe, California.

The population was 89,137 in the 2020 United States census, up from 76,036 at the 2010 census, an increase of 17%. Indio is the most populous city in the Coachella Valley, and was formerly referred to as the "Hub of the Valley," a Chamber of Commerce slogan used in the mid-twentieth century. Indio is now nicknamed the "City of Festivals," a reference to the numerous cultural events held in the city, most notably the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach Festival.

Opuntia basilaris, the beavertail cactus or beavertail pricklypear, is a cactus species found in the southwest United States. It occurs mostly in the Mojave, Anza-Borrego, and Colorado Deserts, as well as in the Colorado Plateau and northwest Mexico. It is also found throughout the Grand Canyon and Colorado River region as well as into southern Utah and Nevada, and in the western Arizona regions along the Lower Colorado River Valley.

Sand to Snow National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in San Bernardino County and northern Riverside County, Southern California.

It protects diverse montane and desert habitats of the San Bernardino Mountains, southern Mojave Desert, and northwestern Colorado Desert.