(Tuesday March 27, 2018)

Back when I was in high school, my mother and I travelled to California to visit her friend and her friend’s family. They took us to all the attractions, including Joshua Tree National Park. I was very excited to go back; however, it was a little less enchanting than the first time I was here. It was the same time of year, but a different time of day. When I was first here, the rocks and trees were glowing in the early sunset. This time, we had the blazing sun. It gave it a different effect, but it was breathtaking nonetheless. However, this time it felt like I was in a Flintstones episode rather than Land of the Lost.

Our lunch location

We camped on BLM land on the south part of the park, so we had to drive about 20-30 miles into the park before we saw our first Joshua tree. There are wonderful campgrounds inside the park, but they were all full.

The terrain is rugged, but the jumbo rocks are easy to climb because they are so rough.

Where are Fred and Wilma?

The first time I was here was before U2 released The Joshua Tree, so this time, I had to take a few black & white photographs in honor of one incredible album.

As with most US national parks, dogs aren’t allowed on the trails, so we didn’t do any long hikes where we would be away from them for too long. In general, the park is lacking in parking. The jumbo rocks are a jumbo attraction, but you have to park on the busy road. There are some lovely picnic grounds, but little parking. We eventually found a parking lot in a less interesting area and made our lunch.

In the future, I’d book a campsite in advance so that we could enjoy these views for a lot longer.