It's BLM land (Bureau of Land Management) and camping is allowed. The wide, open desert has many sites that include firepits, level parking spaces and a few other campers. Doug can hardly wait to do some exploring.
After checking out the expansive sandbox, we decided to drive into Joshua Tree National Park. We had purchased an annual pass when we were back in Oregon and it saved us $15 today on the entrance fee. Sweet!
As usual, our first stop was the visitor center. We love these places. They sell tons of books and clothes and tourist stuff, but they also have free maps and information about the area. The western half of the park is the Mojave Desert habitat and the eastern half is part of the Colorado Desert. Because of the two different habitats, there is a tremendous variety of plants and animals. Everything from bighorn sheep to desert iguana lizards and 40' tall Joshua trees to tiny wildflowers coexist peacefully.
There are several campgrounds inside the park that are geared toward smaller rigs. Our 40' coach would fit, however it's very tight.
The road meanders about 50 miles through the park with lots of turnouts and informational signs. There is something for everyone when it comes to hiking trails. Short ones, long ones, uphill into the mountains ones and the terrain is so diverse. You drive through miles of sandy wash desert, then mountains of stacked rocks.
We didn't get all the way through the park due to time constraints, but we did find time for a snowball fight! Doug started it.....
And I finished it!
We will definitely venture back into the park to see the rest of it. So much to see and so little time!
1 comment:
While we were parked in Palm Springs last October, I had to beg Carole to visit Joshua Tree National Park. She had been there before and had no interest in returning. To her, all desert is the same.
But I prevailed and we drove through one afternoon in the Blazer. I envy you spending some time there. It's beautiful and inspiring country.
Dean & Carole Davis
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