OUTDOOR SCULPTURE GALLERY

I felt like I was back in the dinosaur ages! In the middle of the Anza-Borrego Valley, there is a spectacular museum right off the highway the most amazing sculptures I have ever seen. There are so many animal statutes, at first I was a little overwhelmed. I wanted to take many of them home with me. They would look beautiful and decorative at my home. The good news is every sculpture is for sale.

You can miss this historic outside museum very easily so you have to look closely as you drive on California Highway 79 between Temecula and Anza Borrego.  Coming from Anza you will first see the metal horse statutes on top of the mountain pass. This place is really worth the stop or great for a little road trip from Orange County or Coachella Valley.  The roads in this area are very nice to drive with all the scenery. 

They say when one door closes another opens. This is the story of the artist of these magnificent sculptures, Ricardo Breceda.  While working on a construction job he was injured and while trying to make some money he traded a pair of boots for a welding torch. Hence, his life took on a new meaning when he made his first life-size dinosaur sculpture for his daughter. The sculpture was based on the Jurassic Park movie. 

I remember first seeing all his creations at Vail Lake on a Halloween trip. By the way, Vail Lake has a fabulous “scary” hayride and haunted house along with dancing for the entire family if you are in the area around Halloween time. Breceda used to keep all his metal sculptures in a warehouse at this RV park off California Highway 79. 

Many of the statutes are based on fossils that are found in the desert of Anza-Borrego, California’s largest state park. Breceda uses a mythical vision in creating each of his metal statutes. The sculptures are what the desert may have looked liked centuries long ago.

Believe it or not many of these sculptures are sprinkled over Anza-Borrego Springs desert.  There is a map of where each statute is located online.  So if you are in the mood for a scavenger hunt of pre-historic looking statutes contact The Anza-Borrego Desert Natural History Museum at http://www.abdnha.org/borrego-springs-sculptures-of-ricardo-breceda.htm. Some of them are quite hidden unless you know where to look and are willing to explore. It really sounds like a fun day searching for these magnificent giant sculptures of all kinds of animals past and present. It is also a great road trip on the scenic California Highway 79 whether you are coming from Orange County or the Coachella Valley or wherever you may live!