Joshua Tree National Park

En route to the Los Angeles area, we decided to stop in Joshua Tree for a couple of days. Ray likes the desert, and he was pretty excited about hitting another national park (really getting some use out of that park pass). We arrived at the campground Thursday evening, and we got here in time for a killer dust storm. I’ve been in some strong winds (I’m from hurricane country, after all), but I’m not used to the blinding sand whipping around and making visibility akin to feeling your way through heavy fog. The RV shook until the early morning hours. It wasn’t unsafe. We knew that it wouldn’t get anywhere near strong enough to tip a fifth wheel over, but it wasn’t the best time I’ve had in an RV.  Friday was much better, but the girls had some school to catch up on, and I had a ton of work, so we didn’t venture out (except to go to the campground playground).

Today was our day to take in all that we could of Joshua Tree National Park, where the Mojave and Colorado Deserts come together, combining two desert ecosystems. We did two (short) hikes, though Rayne and Jayden beg to differ about them being short. They thoroughly enjoyed the rock climbing, but we got nothing but complaints when it came to the actual walking. We took the Baker Dam trail, which leads to a water storage area used by early cattlemen, and the Wall Street Mill trail, which leads to an old gold ore mill.

Here are some scenes from our Joshua Tree visit!