Wish List: Where the Streets Have No Name

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After the waterlogged weekend that we had on the East Coast, I’d like to take a trip to the desert.  Seeing the Schuylkill flooded carrying debris and speeding out to the Delaware made me long for someplace dry and arid. For me one of the more famous and accessible desert is the two-desert Joshua Tree National Park.
An eponymous Joshua Tree
I’ve been to Joshua Tree in the winter of 2006.  It was an ambitious day trip that I took with my friend, Denise.  I had a red eye flight to take back to Philadelphia so we left early in the morning to make the 2 ½ hour trek out to Twentynine Pines. 
A rock formation along Park Boulevard
Clichédly, we queued up the U2 as we got onto California Route 62 and followed the sign to the Park. The entrances from 62 put you into the Mojave Desert, the habitat of the Joshua Tree. The name sake of the park was named by Mormon settlers because the shape that reminded them of a Biblical story of Joshua praying with his hand up in the air.

Ecologically, this park is unique for the meeting of the two deserts.  We entered the park through the Mojave Desert, which is generally the higher, drier, and slightly cooler of the two.  The landscape features bare rock hills peppered with loose boulders and sparsely vegetated flatland.  To our east is the other desert – the Colorado Desert, part of the larger Sonoran Desert, which features scrub and cactus.  
View from Ryan Mountain
The park offers a lot to see.  In our foray, we drove through the Mojave, taking in the vast land and pointing out many of the Joshua Trees. We spied down several of the trails that intersected the main roads, but we knew that our time was short.  We headed to climb Ryan Mountain and catch a glimpse of the Colorado Desert.  In the distance, there looked a like a noticeable different between the flora around us and what was off in the east.  However, time was short and I would need to return to Los Angeles, get my bags and return the rental car before my flight.  We descended back to the car and I knew that I would plan to return
Another Joshua Tree with San Gorgonio Mountain, Southern California’s highest peak, in the background
From the NPS site, short visits of a ½ a day or less should involve the main park roads with many pullouts for wayside exhibits to learn more about Joshua Tree. On a clear day, the NPS suggests the Keys View which vista looks beyond the Salton Sea to Mexico.  For a full day, there is time to discover the Park on foot, either on one of the guided tours or on a solitary backcountry hike. Also the park has nine campgrounds for an over-night visit and for the most adventuresome, backcountry camping is permitted.  For me, my ideal visit would be a day in park from opening to close and a comfortable night in Palm Springs.

Images are courtesy of Trip Advisor. 

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