desert, cactus, and crazy trees

from san diego we headed straight out of town and into the desert. it was kind of remarkable how fast the landscape changed - suddenly we were surrounded by rolling hills and shrubs. i suppose it shouldn't have been that surprising, given that san diego is probably pretty dry anyway. after about a half an hour we stopped at a little produce stand on the side of the road where we got some fruit and delicious homemade jerky. the woman there asked if we were headed to julian. it was on our route but not something we'd planned as a stop. she recommended the 'good' pie shop to go to - not that other one that's always full of tourists. maybe she piqued our curiosity - for whatever reason we did decide to stop in julian. maybe it's like this every weekend, or maybe it's a day after christmas thing.. but it seemed like all of san diego was there with their family. we ended up having to double back and park several blocks up on a residential street so we had a bit of a walk to the main drag (and i don't know if i mentioned it but it was cold!). we walked the street with its souvenir shops and pie stands (yes there were several). by the time we left my mom had acquired a suitable fleece (it was colder than she had anticipated when packing) and some apple pie for later. my one critique was the public bathrooms - pretty appalling conditions (and let me tell you, i've peed in some rundown places), freezing cold, plus you had to pay for them!

cactus = desert

not long after we left julian it started to look more like a desert. and by that i suppose i mean there were cacti and other scrubby brush dotting the landscape. after about 45 minutes or so we made it to the town of borrego springs, which (except for not being on route 66) seemed oddly reminiscent of 'radiator springs' in the movie cars. at this point it was past 2 and figured we'd better stop for a late lunch. we settled for the red ocotillo (a large plant that somewhat resembles a cactus, we later learned) where we had a decent meal and read the trivial pursuit cards that were out on the table. from here we made a hasty exit to go to the anza-borrego desert so we could get in a hike before it started to get dark. our impetus for stopping in anza-borrego was mainly that it was a point of interest on the way from san diego to joshua tree. (our initial plan had been to go straight to joshua tree and all the way up to sequoia but december proved to be a bad time of year to hike up there, with lots of roads and trails closed.)

vegetation variation

we made it to the desert/state park, passing along the way the oft-photographed metal sculptures of dinosaurs, horses, and other creatures that dot the roadside. after a quick trip to the visitors center and a chat with the ranger we settled on a 3-mile hike whose trail started just a little ways up the road. towards the beginning of our hike we noticed a little hummingbird flitting in and out of a bush. that ended up being the only fauna we saw on our hike, in spite of promises that sometimes mountain goats could be seen upon the hillsides. on the first stretch of the hike we mostly saw a mix of fuzzy-looking cactus and dried out scrub. occasionally we saw a felled ocotillo, dead but with mesmerizing colors and patterns in its bark. before long we entered something of a canyon, and followed the path alongside a trickle of a stream. the vegetation was slightly different at this point - no more "fuzzy" cactus, for instance. it's amazing how quickly the plants change from one area to the next.

sun glows on the little stream

at one point my mom thought she might be slowing me down and opted to wait on a rock so that i could finish the hike and we could get back before it got dark. i made it to the end of the hike, which ended in a small grove of california fan palms (apparently very rare in the wild), the very top of which were glowing with the last bit of the day's sunlight. i turned around and headed back, walking a bit quicker now to rejoin my mother. in fact i walked so quickly that i almost took the alternate trail back. luckily i noticed my mistake quickly, but only because i saw a type of cactus that i hadn't noticed on this part of the trail. aren't deserts amazing? all in all the hike wasn't spectacular and the desert itself perhaps wasn't all that picturesque but it was an interesting study in desert biology.

sundown, dunes

from the parking lot it was quickly out of the park and on the road so we could get as much of the drive behind us before it was totally dark. my mother isn't fond of driving in the dark and i don't like it much either. we drove past a few interesting sand dunes as the sun was going down. we hopped out of the car to take a few pictures - but not for long because it was windy and it was getting cold. we were happy to be in a warm car. we drove on as the sun went down, not far from the salton sea (although we never did get a glimpse of it). after 30 or 40 minutes we made it to indio, our destination for the night, chosen only for its proximity to joshua tree and its quantity of hotels. we rested a bit after getting into our room (also to kill time before dinner - it gets dark so early and we don't quite want to eat dinner at 6pm). we weighed our options, what few there were, and ended up settling for a filipino place that also served cheesesteaks and fries. we'd never had filipino food before but decided to try the lechon kawali (crispy fried pork) and tapsilog (seasoned beef). both were flavorful but fairly oily and the pork was rather fatty. that, along with the white rice, fried egg and lack of vegetables, made for a fairly unhealthy, if tasty, meal. by then it was probably about 7.30 but, there being little else to do, we made it an early night. as most people traveling through the desert do, i imagine.

cholla!

the next morning we were up fairly early. from the hotel window at breakfast we could see some hot air balloon rising over the mountains across the freeway. we made our way straight to joshua tree, a destination i'd been looking forward to, having seen so many photos of the distinctive trees and beautiful sunsets. some of my mothers' friends characterized it as the armpit of national parks, which seemed a tad unkind. my hopes were a bit higher. we entered the park through the south entrance, my mother getting in free thanks to her national park senior pass (does everyone know about this senior pass? it's amazing - and only $10). after a quick trip to the visitors' center we continued on the road, generally passing very few cars. most people who visit the park, probably coming from the LA area, probably don't even make it to the southern end. which is a shame because we really enjoyed our first stop there, which was the cholla cactus grove.

suspended in the needles

we got out of the car, seeing other people for the first time since we'd entered the park. we wandered among the (ironically) soft-looking cacti, a kind that grows only in the southwestern US. we enjoyed noticing the details - variations in color, the little berry-like growths sprouting throughout, dead discolored branches hollowed out. all with a backdrop of blue skies and the hexie mountains beyond. opposite this mountain range is the pinto mountains - and there are a few other small ranges on the fringes of the park. even more significant, joshua tree marks the meeting point of two distinct desert ecosystems - the mojave and the colorado. undoubtedly this accounts for the unique wildlife in the area. we noted this on the informative brochure we'd gotten at the visitors' center, that included an illustration of the flora and fauna found in the park. we remarked how we never seemed to see any of the animals they list, even seemingly common ones like chipmunks.

what is this??

we kept on and in a little while we came to the first set of campsites. this meant bathrooms - the toilets had been out of order at the visitors' center for some reason. being remote and probably sparingly attended to, we were lucky to find a bathroom with a bit of toilet paper left. we wandered among the campsites and scrambled over rocks to get our first glimpses of the distinctive joshua trees, just small lone trees here and there. we also noticed some interesting vegatation - like this purple cactus i couldn't identify (despite my very cool app). after a bit of exploring we continued on in search of the start of our first hike.

i have to say, he's pretty well camouflaged

not long after we had passed the campsites, we spotted something darting across the road about 40 yards ahead of us. we sped up to try to see what it was and as soon as we reached the point where he'd left the road we pulled over. we had spotted what we later determined was a kit fox! i excitedly got out of the car and started following him, trying to make as little noise as possible. still, i was not as stealthy as i'd hoped. every few meters he'd stop and turn, looking to see what was out there (very handy for taking photos) and then continue on, speeding up when he heard my rustling in the brush. i followed him for quite a ways but never got closer to him than about 20 yards or so. it was so exciting just to actually see some animals that we didn't mind.

one of the bigger trees, along the roadside

about this point in the road was also where we started seeing some bigger and more interesting examples of the joshua trees. eventually we stopped at the destination of our first big hike, and the (sizable) parking lot was packed! we eventually found a spot and realized we should probably eat a little something before heading out. despite intending to be in the park all day, for some reason we hadn't planned on the eventuality of eating inside the park. luckily between the snacks from the farmers market, the roadside stand, and a few nibbles we had brought with us, we cobbled together a decent lunch. we had a bit of water with us and a somewhat flat fanta. with the chilly temperatures and not-too-strenuous walks that ended up being fine but of course if it were summer that would've been disastrous.

varieties of vegetation

we started out on the hike, hidden valley, which was quite crowded. first you went around a bit of a hill (or whatever we're calling these big collections of boulders) and from there it started on the one-mile loop. in the sun we were warm enough but in the shade it was pretty chilly, and we were glad to have our fleeces on. evidently this little valley once served as a hideaway for cattle rustlers. that didn't last long though because the grass ran out. now the area seems to be mostly populated by families hiking and rock climbers. it's probably ideal for newer rock climbers, since most of the cliffs aren't too high but they still present a challenge (i would imagine). the rock formations were striking and the joshua trees and various types of cacti punctuating the landscape made the hike that much more interesting. no wildlife sightings, just lots of people (many asian famlies, we noted).

abstraction by nature

after our first hike we had a bit of time to kill so we thought we'd pull over somewhere quiet and read a bit. we found a field dotted with joshua trees which was deserted except for one family testing out their drone (undoubtedly a christmas gift). after a bit of a rest we decided we had time to do one more quick hike before it would start to get dark. this time we tried the barker dam trail, which led to a small cattle tank build by early cattle ranchers. the views on this hike were slightly less interesting - more fields and fewer boulders - but we were glad to get a little more exercise.

golden not-quite-hour

by now the sun was just starting to go down and we knew soon it would be the golden hour. we'd passed an area earlier that looked like it would be good to see at twilight - big formations of boulders near an area called skull rock (you can guess why). sure enough, before long the sun sank down low enough and glowed gold on the boulders along the roads. it was lovely but fleeting. literally after we had parked, gotten out of the car, and crossed the road we had about 30 seconds of nice lighting before it started to dim. still, it seems like the way those rocks are meant to be seen.

last light

from here i knew the sunset wouldn't be long so we scoped out what we thought would be a good place to park the car and wait. we got away from the big mounds of boulders and found a place along the side of the road that i thought would have a nice variety of trees silhouetted against what i hoped would be a colorful sky. we were content to stay in the car and wait because with the sun down it was quickly getting very cold. to pass the time we read a bit and even played a game of travel yahtzee. i think the spot ended up working well because not only were the silhouettes great but we could see the last bits of sunlight hitting the faraway hills. (even better, i could get a picture of said hills from inside the car). eventually the sunset began and the sky changed lit up with oranges and pinks. instead of describing it i'll just show you a few of the photos:

last of the golden light fades behind the hills

cactus illuminated in pinks and blues

the sky turns a deeper pink

eventually the pinks fade to a bluish gray

i was so delighted at the beautiful sunset and the silhouettes and angles i was able to capture that i'm fairly certain i was grinning ear-to-ear and talking to myself as i ran around snapping photos. i didn't even mind the bitter cold (because although i was glad to have my fleece i failed to pack gloves for this trip) - although when i dragged myself back to the car i was glad to warm my numb fingers against the heat vents. i couldn't have asked for a better way to cap off our day in the park. (although i will say that the pictures of joshua trees against the starry night skies are gorgeous - but i imagine would also entail setting up overnight. so no thanks.)

we made our way out of the north side of the park and along the main road toward our next hotel. it was a sunday so several restaurants were closed. i scoured yelp as my mom drove, looking for a meal that would be decent and wouldn't take too long. yet again, we failed to find any mexican places of note (we figured we might as well wait for good mexican food, being in southern california) and other places we found were reported to have inordinately long wait times. so despite being fairly hungry we opted instead to make it all the way to yucca valley, our destination for the night. we found a little middle eastern place, joshua hookah lounge (oddly named since it neither felt like a lounge nor was the hookah prominent), and had delicious lentil soup and a platter with hummus, pita, and meats to share. after a cold day in the desert that warm hearty soup was exactly what we needed to close out our day.