Joshua Tree National Park is nature’s bliss for travelers. The park is spread over 800,000 acres of desert scenery, unique Joshua Trees, and unusual rock formations. But the real distinguishing feature of this park is its camping and stargazing adventures. Other exciting activities that one can explore are hiking, rock climbing, or simply behind the lens.
Although the park is open year-round, the peak season runs through October to May. There are 3 entrances to the park, North, South, and West. The closest town to North entrance is the City of Twentynine Palms, Joshua Tree Village to West entrance, and Cottonwood springs to South entrance. The Park has 2 visitor centers, Oasis Visitor center is closest to West and North entrance while Cottonwood Visitor center is closest to South entrance.
Public transport to the park is limited and no shuttle service exists within the park areas. There are no cell services throughout the majority of the park and GPS navigation cannot be reliable, a helpful thing would be to download offline maps. For more updated information check out parks websites https://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm
Our Stay @ Joshua Tree National Park
The City of Twentynine Palms was our base for Joshua Tree NP. This small town in the middle of the desert has everything from fine dining to beautiful art all over. Also, known as ” An Oasis of Murals”, there are murals painted all over the walls of the business in the downtown area like an outdoor gallery. To know more about the history of the mural and locations, check out https://www.visit29.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/MuralBrochure-2016.pdf
I was also fascinated to know that the town has lots of Indians settled from generations. Most of the business is owned by Indians. So all my vegetarian friends and people like my husband who miss Indian food just a few days into a trip, you will get all your cravings satisfied in this lovely small town.
We stayed at 9 Palms Inn which is around 6 miles from the park. This motel has all the basic amenities and the place is quite creative where each unit is designed as a separate cabin and painted with so many colors. Our cabin also had the best view of the sunrise in the whole of JTNP.
Things to do @ Joshua Tree National Park
Camping & Stargazing
The Park has well-developed campsites set in the backdrop of big boulders of rocks that gives a perfect rustic feel. Even though there are 9 campsites, they fill really fast. Some of the campsites are first to come first serve while others do require beforehand reservations.
As stargazing is concerned, you can always see from your campsite but if you are not a camping person like me, a park ranger suggested Cholla Cactus Garden Parking lot is also the best place to view the stars to jiggle your inner astronomy. If you are an astronomy enthusiast, I suggest visiting Sky’s The Limit Observatory and Nature center at the city of Twentynine Palms https://www.skysthelimit29.org/
Rock Climbing
Joshua Tree NP flaunts itself as a world-class climbing destination. Well, I am not a climber but I did enjoy seeing the climbers on spot. The park brochure has many detailed guidelines and pieces of information to make your climbing smooth and safe.
Hiking @ Joshua Tree National Park
Hiking is what I love to do at National Parks. There are many trails that one can hike from easy to challenging ones. Early morning is the best time to start your hike, also the parking lot gets full pretty quickly everywhere. We spent an entire day hiking the JTNP and here are the ones that we were able to do.
Ryan Mountain
We started our day with a hike to Ryan Mountain. Even though the hike is only 3 miles roundtrip, the elevation gain makes it a bit challenging but still doable and certainly makes you wonder when are you going to reach the summit. Once you reach the summit, the 360-degree panoramic views are completely exhilarating.
Keys View
Keys View is an accessible loop of 0.25 miles from the parking lot. On a clear day, you can witness majestic views of the San Andreas Fault, Mount San Jacinto, Mount San Gorgonio, and the Salton Sea. There is an information booth that tells where exactly to look for and I was all in to find the San Andreas Fault line and thinking about the natural disaster that might await. It just gave me chills.
Hidden Valley
This is an easy hike of a mile out and back. The trail is mostly flat and level. You can wander around the impressive rock formations and catch sight of rock climbers in action. The hike begins from the Hidden Valley picnic area but parking is again tight. We parked almost half a mile far from the actual hike.
Skull Rock
The Skull rock is visible from the parking lot itself but if you are in the mood to sweat a little, you can hike the Discovery trail of 0.7 mile that connects Skull Rock and Split Rock Loop trails at Face Rock.
Arch Rock Nature Trail
While the park brochure does not specifically mention this hike but its quite fun to explore this Arch Rock Nature Trail. It can be accessed through the White Tank Campground parking lot. The hike begins from here and it takes about 30-40 minutes out and back. It is not a difficult hike but does require a bit of climbing the rocks and therefore it’s not a wheelchair-friendly trail.
Cap Rock
You can see this rock from the parking lot or take a half-mile loop nature trail to admire big rock piles and Joshua trees.
Cholla Cactus Garden
A garden of sharp and witty cactus will amaze your imagination in every possible way. Stay on the trail and admire thousands of naturally grown cholla cactus from a safe distance because believe me “They will get you “.
My Own Discovery of Rock Figures
I truly treasure my visit to this National Park and obviously will be back again for some more adventures or maybe try camping next time. Have you been to Joshua Tree NP or any other National Parks in California? Check out my blog post on Death Valley National Park. Do share your thoughts and travel stories with me?
Disclaimer: This post contains links and suggestions that are not sponsored or paid. They are purely for passing some additional information to help plan your trip.
