Sunday, January 21, 2018

A Pretty Pair of Palm Springs Hikes

It's January, and the hiking is not good in Washington. So, we took a quick trip down to Palm Springs and thoroughly enjoyed more explorations of the desert.



We made our way to the Coachella Valley Preserve and started on the McCollum Trail
Not just Palm Trees but a real pond in the middle of the desert.
Walking around the pond
We then left the oasis to head up in to the high desert

San Jacinto in the background

Happy to be hiking

The view from our lunch spot


Stats for this Hike in the Coachella Valley Preserve
Round Trip= 7 miles
Elevation gain= 800 feet
Trails=McCollum trail, Moon Country Loop, Herman's Hike

Two days later, we headed to the west side of Joshua Tree National Park for another fine hike.

Started at the Black Rock campground and made our way to the very poorly marked trail

Ascending on the Panorama Loop Trail

Joshua Tree, photo by Keith


Another fine photo by Keith


Maybe one of the biggest juniper bushes we had ever seen
Warren Peak
Plenty of life in the desert, you just have to look for it
Coming back down the Black Canyon
Stats for this second hike in Joshua Tree National Park
Round trip=9 miles
Elevation gain=1800 feet
Trails hiked= Panorama Loop Hike, Warren Peak Hike

We had a great little trip, now we're back home under gray skies, watching the wind and rain.

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