“Yeah, Desert Sky - Dream beneath the Desert Sky”
A drive through Joshua Tree National Park might take a couple hours, viewing the park from the road. An exploration of the park would take a lifetime. Joshua Tree National Park has over 550,000 acres of wilderness filled with a variety of plants and animals that make their home in this land shaped by strong winds, unpredictable torrents of rain, and climatic extremes. Every now and then, man intrudes in this wilderness and leaves his brief, passing mark among the surreal geologic features that cover the landscape. Let’s go see what we can find.
While driving along a stretch of open road, something off in the distance catches my eye. Hmmmm, that demands investigation. T Red finds its way along a dirt road and up a slight hill to what appears to be the ruin of an old milling operation.
Read MoreThe day was perfect, mid-70s with clear skies, the slightest breeze and no one in the area. Once you've been in the desert long enough, you get a feeling of how "visited" an area is. The Golden Bell Mine is a seldom visited place. Hidden behind a low hill, there's no evidence from the road that there's something interesting behind it. Like many of the awesome places in JTree, you gotta get out of the car and do some exploring (and of course, pre-trek research always pays off, and helps keep you from getting lost, breaking a leg, dying of thirst and being eaten my coyotes and turkey vultures, but that's another story).
Read MoreThere's a dirt road just north of Hemingway, it heads south to a number of small parking areas. Park in the third one you come to, it'll be on your left. You'll be looking up a rocky canyon and thinking, "why would anyone want to go up there." The answer? To see what you can find.
Read MoreOk, raise your hand if you've ever been to the Stirrup Tank area in JT. I see a few of you have. Those of you who didn't raise your hand, shame on you. If you enjoy desert hiking amidst and amongst enormous, oddly disquieting-shaped granite boulders (and who doesn't), then set aside a half day the next time you're in the park to visit the Stirrup Tank area. Odds are you'll have several squares miles to yourself, to explore and enjoy some amazing sights.
Read MoreAfter a recent visit to the Pinto Wye arrastra, I stumbled upon an interesting place while hiking cross desert back to my truck. And that's just how it happens sometimes. Hiking along, minding your own business, taking in the scenery while also trying to watch where your feet are going so you don't step on anything sharp or poisonous.
Read MoreJoshua Tree National Park, the California Gold Country, forgotten places in the Mojave Desert. These are a few of my favorite things.
