Joshua Tree National Park, CA
car camping at it's finest
Day One
We arrived in the city of 29 Palms at about 5:30 PM on Friday. We were fortunate to have dodged the holiday traffic and made really good time at 3 hours drive.
We pulled into a gas station to fill up and saw that they had firewood, an essential for any campsite. Selling at $7 a bundle, I decided to hold off and search for somewhere less expensive. We passed by a shack that advertised firewood for $4.99 but yet wasn't quite convinced. That turned out to be a mistake!
We pulled into WallyWorld thinking they have EVERYTHING Right? Wrong. They did not sell firewood. Next, we went next door to a grocery store Stater Bros and they had just run out of wood. The lady at the counter suggested I go down half a mile to a local vendor who would have them, and by the wheel barrel. So off we go and not long, we saw the vendor, literally on the side on the rode, with the wood in a wheel barrel. That was too sketchy for my comfort.
On the way, however, I noticed there was Home Depot so we made a u-turn and headed back. Finally! Wood! It was a little pricey at $6.50 a bundle, but we did not feel like spending any more precious time searching for wood to burn in the desert. We purchased 3 bundles (one for each night) and off we went.
We arrived at the ranger station after 6 PM and it was closed but we had prepaid for our reservation, so we only had to drive through. The sight of other camps set already set up made me even more excited for our weekend to begin! Driving past other campsites, we found ours, #59. It appears to be bigger than most of the sites, if not the biggest. Seeing as that we brought our humongous tent we call the Taj Majal, we were really stoked about that.
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| my happy Husband |
We could fit 2 of our queen Intex Air Mattress if we wanted to. That's how big this this is!
As we patiently awaited our friends arrival, we burned through 2 bundles of the firewood. Not what we had planned! They arrived a short time after 9:00 PM and we sat around the campfire with and drinks. Let the party begin!
Day Two
Couldn't start our day without the proper breakfast!
Drove to Cottonwood Visitor Center to obtain a park map. Plus, it's a tradition to visit the Visitor Center at any National Park :)
Our day was followed by a series of events in this order:
·
Picnic
at Hidden Valley
·
Hiked
through Hidden Valley (nature walk)
o
a
rock-enclosed valley that is rumored to have been used by cattle thieves. very easy 1 mile loop
·
Keys
View
o
breath-taking
views of the valley. You can see San
Andreas Fault line, Mt. San Jacinto, Mt. San Gorgonio, the Salton Sea, Palms
Springs, and Coachella
 |
| Jill and I at Keys View |
·
Skull
Rock
o
a
very neat rock formation that resemble a skull
·
Arch
Rock
o
.5
mile loop to a natural arch
·
Cholla
Cactus Garden (pronouced cho-ya)
o
.250 mile
loop through a dense concentration of Cholla Cactus. They are quite a sight to see. In the sunlight, they appears to glow. As friendly as that sounds, they are VERY
sharp and will cling to your shoes and pants if you don't watch where you step!
·
Back
to home base at Indian Cove!
We really lucked out with the weather. It was a perfect 80 degree in the day and about 60 degree at night. We started our campfire while my husband cooked us dinner on the WeberQ. Grilled chicken kabob and vegetables that I had prepared at home.
After dinner, we had beer and wine, shared stories and gazed the night light. We spotted about 10 satellites in the sky. That was pretty cool to see.
Day Three
We decided to do a short hike and enjoy a relaxing rest of the afternoon. I liked that idea alot. It was a bit hotter on Sunday than the previous days. I didn't care to stay out in the heat for too long.
We took a short drive to 49 Palms Oasis trail head. There was more fellow hikers there than I'd expected today. I definitely saw a lot of family, with small kids. I thought it was a little unbearable for the smaller kids because of the heat, incline, and and lack of shade. There was a couple of girls, probably 3- 4 years old who cried and their fathers had to carry them. I felt really bad for them :(
I must admit that the incline was tough even for me, but with pace and frequent breaks, I managed. The trail was very rocky, well marked and in good shape. It's listed as a moderate hike, and in about 45 minutes we made it to the Oasis. There was some water there, but the mostly you notice how vibrant and alive the Palm Trees are, considering its place in the middle of the dessert.
We stopped for a snack break, enjoyed the view and headed back.
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| panoramic view of 49 Palms Oasis |
I felt the hike back was a little more tough than the hike in, but that's just me. In conclusion, this was a worthwhile hike and I would recommend it.
We were a little relieved to get back to salvation of our cool shade at our campsite, but mostly the cool beer that await us. We took a short breather of napping, reading, and just floating away with our thoughts. Later, Jill, Carl and Tyler took off for the rocks for a little climbing I stayed back, intent on starting my own fire. I often feared that I would somehow be stuck in the woods and not know how to start a fire, and so I learned.
then...
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| our Coleman 15x13 Instant Screen offered a nice shade and food protection against bugs |
Day Four
It was sadly the last morning and time to pack up and head back to our realities. We got up at 8 and began the packing process. Carl made us a breakfast of eggs and bacon, YUM!
We took down the Taj which wasn't as bad as setting up. It took about 3 minutes.
We packed up the cars and said our goodbyes. This was such a great trip, made even better with good friends. Until next time!
