SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — After two years, the main roadway leading in and out of Border Field State Park will reopen this weekend, making it easier for the public to reach this popular site located on a bluff above the Pacific Ocean.
Right now, access is only possible by walking in, riding a bike or a horse.
In the past, the road has needed repairs and has been prone to flooding with water contaminated with raw sewage from Mexico.
With no sewage flows and the potholes and cracks fixed, the state says it will keep the roadway open on weekends until the rainy season when flooding tends to occur.
“This is a beautiful gift they are giving the community,” said Maria Fernandez, with Friends of Friendship Park.
Fernandez says visiting Border Field State Park, whenever she can walk in, is one of her favorite pastimes regardless of the nearly 2-mile hike required now to get to the site.
“It’s beautiful the area, you can see the whole view of the ocean, the calmness of the water, the seagulls flying, I love to come here and enjoy nature.”
The reopening of the road coincides with the 54th anniversary of Border Field State Park, Fernandez says more people will be able to come and enjoy the area.
“It’s a long way for some families that come here with little kids and have to walk all the way or need a horse to get to monument mesa.”
Community leaders will be hosting an all-day festival on the Mexico side of Friendship Park throughout the day on Saturday; events on the U.S. side are also planned.
One includes groups on each side of the border performing scenes from a Kumeyaay fable that tells of a condor from the south and an eagle from the north coming together to bring peace and harmony.
“While the new 30-foot border walls are a desecration of this historic location, it is important for people in the United States to demonstrate their continuing solidarity with our friends in Mexico,” said Daniel Watman, program pirector of the Friends of International Friendship Park.
The cost of entry to Border Field State Park is $7 per vehicle, cash only.
Visitors can also park on a dirt lot and walk in for free. Gate hours are from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Distance to Monument Mesa and the coastline from the gate is about 1.5 miles.
While the opening of the Border Field State Park roadway is seen as a positive step, Friends of Friendship Park remain disappointed the cross-border meeting place, for which the park is famous, remains closed on the United States side.
San Diego Sector U.S. Border Patrol continues to prohibit public access to federal property between two 30-foot border barriers where the park is located on the U.S. side of the border.
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