Joshua Tree National Park, California

Before you get to the entrance to Joshua Tree National Park, it would be my suggestion to stop in at the Visitors Center and read a few bits of information and look at the map that they have of the park.





This is a Joshua Tree.






If you enlarge these photos and read them this information is very interesting








Very pretty scenery of the snow-capped mountains and the strange-looking Joshua Trees.

There are several entrances into the park where you will pay $30 USD for a carload of people depending on how many there are.  You are given a map and this gives you information on the trails and the things to see and do within Joshua Tree National Park. I researched online what entrance to come in because it will save you some miles and I also researched with some YouTube videos the best trails or the must-see trails to do.
Joshua Tree National Park is comprised of over 500 square miles of territory, that is interlaced with several fault lines.  "When you're at one of the park's Fan-Palm Oasis, you are on top of a crack in the Earth's crust.  Geological faults crisscross the park area. When ground water hits a fault plane it rises to the surface and creates conditions for an Oasis".

This Park is otherworldly looking with its gigantic rock formations and Joshua Trees.  The Rock formations were originally molten lava that was rising towards the surface pushing up the mountains and then it hardened and cracked and water rounded and widened the cracks.  Then the earth eroded and left the rocks looking like a bunch of giant toy blocks.


















Joshua Tree National Park is a climber's dream.  As of now, there are 5000+ climbs and more being pioneered.





Can you spot the 7 people on top of that very tall climb to the left?  I will leave the climbing to the pros.

Joshua trees actually live to be about 150 years old.  The greenery on them is actually 10-inch long thick needles. You do not want to come close to one or fall into one.



The drive from Palm Springs to Joshua Tree National Park is roughly an hour depending on the route and entrance you take.
  
Hidden Valley Trail
This trail is a one-mile nature loop.  It isn't an easy hike and it takes you up into a Valley where cattle rustlers used to hide their stolen cattle. 






The valley is hidden by rock formations and would have naturally corraled the cattle in.  There are literally tons of beautiful rock formations and picture-taking moments in this one-mile loop.  








Along the way, there are trail markers and stone steps that have been built into the trail to help a girl out. 



 
If you have mobility concerns this is not a doable hike.  It has a few areas that I would label as strenuous.











There are little signs posted everywhere of different flora and fauna to provide information to help one learn.  It is a great trail hike to introduce you to Joshua Tree National Park.











Parking is good with lots of spots.  There is also a bathroom for hikers to use tucked into the base of this rock formation to the right.









Barker Dam Trail

This was probably our favourite trail out of the two. 








That's me in the blue up in the rocks in the photo to the right.










There were even more unusual rock formations that you could actually squeeze through and take tons of pictures of.  This trail takes you up into the actual Barker Dam that was created to provide water for the heads of cattle.




This is the Barker Dam, which looks tiny in the photo but is a fair size.








You will come to an unusual-looking trough system that was built after the damn was created.  The water was piped down from the dam to the trough so that the trough was always full for the cattle. 

At the top of the trail loop before you come to Barker Dam is your chance to see some genuine ancient Petroglyphs.


















We came across a sign that talked about the Cheese Bush plant that apparently smells like cheese.   We couldn't find it nor could we smell the cheese bush either.

We were introduced to a Creosote Bush which looks like a normal green bush.  If you grab the tiny little leaves and rub them between your fingers they smell horrible just like creasote does.  Creosote was used on railroad ties and garden landscaping wood.  These are soaked in creosote to preserve them.








We kept seeing these burnt-looking red plants that look like they were stuck into these dry dead bushes.  This is the Cats Claw Bush.

















The Cholla Cactus or better known as the Teddy Bear Cactus are the farthest things from looking like a teddy bear let alone feeling like a teddy bear.  This particular Teddy Bear Cactus would fit more appropriately into a horror movie than an actual child's bed.  See below.

There is a large parking area and washrooms for use.







Somebody needs a hug!!  Darren hates having his picture taken.














Keys View Lookout

Keys View Lookout is well worth driving the 9 kilometres to get to. It overlooks the Coachella Valley and the Greater Palm Springs area.  There is a haze over the entire Valley and this is either one of two things -  pollution or water droplets.  I'm going to go with the pollution.  

Palm Springs is 20 miles away and we could barely see it due to the pollution haze.

   

The views are quite good.  Parking is good, there are a lot of spots.  Once you park then you must walk uphill to the lookout.








Skull Rock
You don't even have to get out of your car for this one.  You can do a drive-by or get out of your car and park.  Parking is along the roadside.  The boulder resembles a skull, hence the name.






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