As we slowly start thinking about traveling closer to home, I have created a series that includes some outdoor places that are perfect for hiking, camping and exploring. Joshua Tree National Park is one of those places that hits all the boxes. I had originally wrote about Joshua Tree in a longer post that I published last May titled California Dreaming. I am expanding upon my earlier post to highlight this national park and give you all the info to make a visit.
When we visited Joshua Tree in December 2019, I hadn’t been in many years and I had forgotten just how magical it was. This park is a must see in California and you should definitely try to make a trip here. Not only is it beautiful, but visiting will change how you feel about the desert.
Joshua Tree National Park Basics
Joshua Tree National Park is an 800,000 acre park that is located just 140 miles east of Los Angeles in Southern California. The park sits where the Mohave Desert and the Colorado Desert meet. It is filled with cacti, trees, shrubs, lizards and other desert dwelling plants, birds and animals. More information about the history and make-up of Joshua Tree can be found here and here. There is a fee to enter the park or you can use your America the Beautiful parks pass for entry.
I recommend arriving early if you are visiting during the winter season. There are limited parking spots at the popular trail heads and you will want to beat the crowds. There are not many water facilities inside the park, so bring lots of water. It is essential to prepare yourself with all you will need in the park and pack layers of clothing. When we visited in December, the temperatures were quite cold and we wore our jackets the entire time.
Joshua Tree National Park is located on Yuhaviatam/Maarenga’yam and Newe lands.
Getting There and Away
Joshua Tree National Park is located about 140 miles east of Los Angeles, 175 miles from San Diego and 215 miles from Las Vegas. It is accessible via car and you can fly to one of the nearby cities and drive from there. There are three entrances to the park. The west entrance is at Joshua Tree Village and the north entrance is at Twentynine Palms. There is also a south entrance at Cottonwood Springs.
Where to Stay
There are two small towns in Joshua Tree and Twentynine Palms where most of the lodging is located near the park entrances. I would recommend staying in the Joshua Tree area, as that was where most of the restaurants and amenities were. We stayed both nights at an Airbnb in a fairly remote location on the outskirts of Joshua Tree. You can also stay farther out, but it will make beating the crowds at the park entrances much harder.
Additionally, there are five campgrounds within the park that offer basic camping options and can be reserved in advance at Recreation.gov. There are also a number of camping options outside of the park.
What to Eat
I was surprised to see that there are a decent amount of food options in the area despite being in the middle of the desert. Some top restaurants are in Joshua Tree, as well as a few in Twentynine Palms. We ate at Pie for the People! and were surprised how much we loved it. You can also try some hot spots around the park. Since we visited over the holidays we had less options, but in general there are many yummy choices to choose from.
Joshua Tree Hiking and exploring
Joshua Tree is huge and there are lots of things to do, including many great hikes for all activity levels. While we weren’t able to do any trail runs in Joshua Tree, we did a series of short and easy hikes on our visit. We went to the following places based on various recommendations.
Hidden Valley Nature Trail
We started at the Hidden Valley Nature Trail. This mile loop trail was an easy and beautiful hike. It is great for the whole family and didn’t take too long to complete.
Barker Dam Trail
The Barker Dam Trail was another easy 1 mile loop hike. We took this hike easy and we got to see the historic Barker Dam. Overall it was a very relaxed hike with some cool views.
Ryan Mountain Trail
The Ryan Mountain Trail was a slightly more difficult three mile out and back hike up Ryan Mountain. It was was moderately strenuous with spectacular views and a must see if you are up for it.
Skull Rock Trail
We stopped by the Skull Rock Trail, which is an easy loop directly off the park road. We did a quick pitstop here and we didn’t hike the full trail. It felt like more of a highly overrated IG hype location and not necessary to stop.
Cholla Cactus Garden
The Cholla Cactus Garden is near the north entrance of the park. It offers an easy walk around the unique cacti and was one of my favorite areas that we visited. It was a bit of drive from the other hikes, but it was completely worth it. There is a partly paved path that follows a short trail around the garden. It is very popular, i.e. crowded, but for good reason.
What Next?
If you are in the Southern California area, I highly recommend you making Joshua Tree National Park part of your trip. If you want ideas for outdoor places to visit, read my other posts to see what adventures await nearby. I recommend reading my posts about the beautiful state of New Mexico, the Grand Canyon or our trip to Rocky Mountain National Park.
