Joshua Tree National Park and Mojave National Preserve

In March 2003, my cousin Donna and I went for a long weekend of camping in the California desert. We spent two nights at Joshua Tree National Park and one night at Mojave National Preserve.

Joshua Tree National Park

We stayed two nights at Black Rock Campground. This was a great place. Lots of Joshua Trees, waking up in the morning to the sound of quails running around outside your tent, flush toilets and sinks. The campsites here are also good size and comfy.

There are several short hikes that can be taken from this campground. I took a hike on High View trail, a 1.3 mile hike with a decent amount of elevation, into the high desert with great views of the snow covered Sierras and the valleys of JTNP.

We then drove over to Oasis Visitor Center, where there is a small Oasis (Oasis of Mara) - one of the 5 fan palm oasis in the park. From here we entered the park and really began our adventure.

Cholla Cactus Garden

WOW! We came over a hill and then as far as the eye could see was a sea of cholla cacti. We could not believe what we were seeing. These cacti are so amazing. They are a chocolate brown color at the bottom and a very pale yellow at the top. This is the spines, as they die they turn brown, but don't fall off. The cholla is also known as the jumping cactus or teddy bear cactus. It is NOT cuddly and can seem to jump at you. The spines are very painful and very difficult to remove. Beware!

Arch Rock

A very short walk site 9 at White Tank campground, where we had lunch - eating on the tail gate of the Bronco. The arch is gorgeous and look at Donna - she is amazingly strong - holding up that huge boulder!

Barker Dam

A historical section of the park where there was once (and occasionally still is, so we were told) water and was the location of a cattle farm. This is also where we saw a rock formation that we named "Sitting Dog".

49 Palms Oasis

We walked the "moderately strenuous" - although we found it pretty easy - 3 mile trail to the 49 Palm Oasis. Saw lots of cool cacti and had to get some close ups of the red barrel cactus - very cool. The Oasis didn't have lots of water, but it was shady, fun and relaxing. And the first sight of it on the trail was amazing - this shock of tall green trees in the middle of mountains or rock and sand.

Other

On The Way To Mojave