Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree National Park is the essential day trip from Palm Springs and, for many visitors, the highlight of the whole trip. It sits just north and east of the Coachella Valley, where two great deserts meet: the higher, cooler Mojave in the west, home to the twisted Joshua trees that give the park its name, and the lower, hotter Colorado Desert in the east, a sparser landscape of ocotillo, creosote and the famous Cholla Cactus Garden. Between them rise piles of golden monzogranite boulders, stacked and rounded into shapes that look sculpted, and these rock gardens — Hidden Valley, Jumbo Rocks, Skull Rock, the Wonderland of Rocks — are what make the park unlike anywhere else. From Palm Springs there are two ways in. The West Entrance in the town of Joshua Tree, reached via Highway 62 in about an hour, is the busiest; the North Entrance at Twentynine Palms and the South Entrance off Interstate 10 are quicker to get through. A classic first visit enters at the West Entrance, walks the one-mile Hidden Valley loop, takes in the reflected boulders at Barker Dam, drives up to Keys View for the panorama over the Coachella Valley and the San Andreas Fault, stops at Skull Rock, and then descends through the transition zone to the Cholla Cactus Garden at golden hour before exiting south toward I-10. The park is open 24 hours a day year-round and no entry reservation is needed. A private vehicle pass costs $30 and is valid for seven days; buying it on Recreation.gov before you arrive speeds up the line. There is no food, water or gas inside the park and cell service is very limited, so arrive with everything you need and download an offline map.

Most visitors come between October and May, when highs sit in the comfortable seventies and eighties, and the park is busiest on weekends, holidays and during spring break from March to mid-April. The National Park Service advises arriving before 8am on busy days and reaching the popular trailheads at Hidden Valley, Barker Dam and Lost Horse Mine before 9am; parking lots there and at Keys View and Split Rock close temporarily when full, and rangers ticket cars parked off the pavement. Summer is a different place altogether: highs around 100 degrees or more make midday hiking dangerous, and the only sensible plan is a very early start or a sunset drive. Winter brings cold nights near freezing and the occasional dusting of snow on the boulders, a rare and beautiful sight.

The park rewards slowing down. Rock climbers come from around the world for its thousands of routes; casual scramblers can spend hours on the low boulders around Jumbo Rocks and Hidden Valley. Ryan Mountain is the best short summit hike, about three miles round trip with a steady climb and a 360-degree view. The Cholla Cactus Garden boardwalk is short and flat, but stay on it — the cholla's spines detach at a touch and are painful to remove. Joshua Tree is an International Dark Sky Park, and staying until after sunset at Cap Rock, Quail Springs or Ryan Mountain shows a sky full of stars just an hour from the lights of Palm Springs. Pets are not allowed on trails, drones are prohibited, and desert tortoises have the right of way, which is why speed limits are low.

For a Palm Springs-based trip, the full loop — in through the West Entrance and out through the South — takes a long day of about eight to ten hours including stops and the drive. Pack a cooler with lunch and more water than seems necessary, fill the tank before leaving the highway towns, and plan dinner in Joshua Tree village, Yucca Valley or back in Palm Springs. If you prefer not to drive, Desert Adventures and other local operators run guided Joshua Tree tours from the Coachella Valley. Overnighting in the park requires a campsite, most of which are reservation-only and book out up to six months ahead in peak season; the high-desert towns along Highway 62 offer cabins and motels for those who want sunrise in the park.