When visiting the area of Anza California, if you are an equestrian or hiker enthusiast, you won’t want to miss the Beauty Mountain Wilderness. As the crow flies it is about 6 miles from the center of Anza. Road travel puts it about 10 to 15 miles from Anza. Beauty Mountain Wilderness encompasses 15,628 acres of land. It is named after the mountain that dominates the area, which has an elevation of 5,548 feet. The area is comprised of canyons and rocky mountainsides. The vegetation includes; redshank, scrub oaks, and certain areas are dominated by yucca, cholla cactus and coastal sage.
The area has trails and old dirt roads which can be used for exploring the area.
One of the well-marked trails is the Tule Peak Trail. This trailhead is the easiest to find and the staging area is fairly close to the trailhead.
To access this trail from Highway 79 south, go to Highway 371 and follow it to Bradford Road and turn right. Follow Bradford around the hard right turn, the road name will change to Tule Valley Road. Stay on Tule Valley Road to Evening Star Trail and turn left, from Evening Star Trail to Carrot Lane Turn left. From Carrot Lane to Deersprings Trail turn right and follow along while the road curves and goes up and down a few hills. This takes you to the staging area; you will be able to see the well used curved out area on the left side of the road from the top of the last hill. To get to this trailhead you will be driving on dirt roads, which can be in any condition depending on the local weather. Once you have parked at the staging area follow the wilderness trail signs towards the east and you will pass through a horse gate that was installed to keep motorized vehicles off the wilderness trails. The trail climbs about 1000 feet in elevation to views of Vail Lake, Aguanga, Culp Valley and Oak Grove. Some local landmarks are Tule Peak, Rock Pile, and Beauty Mountain in the distance. The trail will lead you to some junction trails that will lead you to Culp Valley or Million Dollar Springs.
The area is rugged, isolated and although there are areas with springs, water is not plentiful. Most of the trails include elevation gains, so hikers and equestrians should be in good physical condition. Wildlife is abundant in this area and you might encounter; deer, bobcat, quail, mountain lion and rattlesnakes.
