State: California
Link: https://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm
Days: 2.5
Month: December
Hotel: Holiday Inn Express & Suites Twentynine Palms- Joshua Tree
Hikes: 11 = 16.5 miles+ (includes paved paths)
Ice Cream: N/A
We came from Death Valley NP and made it to the visitor center before they closed. Overall, Joshua Tree was challenge to wear the right layering of clothes. Without the sun out, or being in direct sunlight, it was very cold. With the sun out you’ll quickly get sun hot. Layers are key and we often changed/removed layers throughout the day.
Driving was interesting with lots of hills in and around the park. Outside the park, speeds range from 25 to 65 MPH and have traffic lights at all speeds. As someone not from around here, it was fun trying to keep track of speeds, watching lights, all while going down a hill or around a corner.
Day 1
We started at Fortynine Palms Oasis Trail, a 3 mile out and back moderate trail with 300 feet of elevation gain in both directions. This trail has many steps so someone who has difficulty navigating a lot of steps should avoid this trail. When you think you’re done going up, you’ll round the corner to find you need to go up again. It took us about 1 hr 45 mins with several stops to take a breath, check out the views, and snap some pics. At the end of the trail you’ll end at the oasis, which had many birds singing. There was restoration in progress in some of the areas. This was an overall nice hike that had the right amount of challenge for us.
Next up was the Oasis of Mara Trail, an easy paved 0.5 mile loop. It had many pretty trees and various plants; a quick little walk.
Then we went to the Split Rock Trail. Split Rock was actually at the beginning right by the parking lot so you don’t need to hike the trail if all you want to do is see Split Rock. We opted to do the trail, which ended up being an easy 2.4 mile loop (including an out and back section) with some optional rock scrambling along the way. The trail was not marked great, at one point we thought we were lost. If you’re not sure stay calm and look around – many times you’ll see small rocks outlining the path. We stuck to it and ended up seeing Pancake Rock and a picture perfect Mickey Mouse looking cactus. We also hiked the optional side route to Face Rock (then back to the main path).
Next we headed to Skull Rock, which looks like a skull. It was pretty neat. There was parking on the side of the road right by the rock.
The final destination on this day was Cap Rock, an easy 0.3 mile walk through many Joshua trees and several other plants. It was a peaceful and beautiful end to our day.
Day 2
We started our morning dark and early, arriving at the Cholla Cactus Garden 40 minutes before sunrise. About half the lot was full when we arrived. There’s a 0.25 mile trail we walked around twice. Mountains were lit by the sun quickly as it came up. As the sun continued to rise, cacti came to life, which looked amazing!
Then we went to the Ocotillo pull off to check out the interesting plant.
Next we started the Mastodon Peak Trail from the Cottonwood Trailhead, hiking the trail counterclockwise. The signs were slightly confusing but the hike ended up being around a 2.4 mile easy loop that had around 400 feet of elevation gain. The trail was sandy in some spots and had gravel in others. This hike had rock scrambling opportunities along the way. Amazing views from the Mastodon Peak. We stopped at the Mastodon Mine. It took us about an hour and 35 minutes. We spotted Eel Rock along the path!
Following the Mastodon Peak Trail, we headed for the Hidden Valley Trail. This was an easy 1 mile loop. This is an awesome little hike that highlights a lot of things found throughout the park like Joshua trees, other plants, and lots of cool rocks.
Then we went to Ryan Ranch which included a 1 mile out and back, easy hike to the ranch. The ranch is an old homestead with machinery, a collapsed windmill, a stone covered well, and walls of some buildings are still standing too. Along the way we saw someone rock climbing.
Our final trail for the day was Hall of Horrors, an easy 0.8 miles walk through a bunch of massive boulders. May get to see some people rock climbing.
Day 3
The first thing this day we did was go to Arch Rock. We arrived at the Twin Tanks parking lot 40 minutes before sunrise and were the only ones in the parking lot. We hiked from the lot to Arch Rock and watched as the sun came up. We were able to see stunning views of Arch Rock! Then we hiked over to Heart Rock. The entire hike was an easy 1.7 mile out and back hike.
Then we headed to Ryan Mountain, a 2.9 mile out and back hike and climbs over 1,000 feet to the summit. The trail is well marked and fairly basic in terms of complexity, however, the elevation gain is considered strenuous; overall we rate it moderate. You’ll get nice 360* views of the park mountains. The way back is all down the mountain.
The final stop was to check out Intersection Rock, which was right at a parking lot.
