"It is in the wild places, where the edge of the earth meets the corners of the sky, the human spirit is fed." Art Wolf


Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Joshua Tree National Park, CA

These pictures are all from Joshua Tree National Park.   It hasn't gotten old yet to flash my "magic" Access Pass to the ranger and get a smile and a welcome...an free access.   The young ranger a the desk even called it the "magic" pass.   An the campsite was half price at a whopping $7.50 per night.  

Liz and I stayed in the Cottonwood Campground which is the nearest just north off of I-10.  Reviews on line did say it is one of the last to fill up on busy weekends. It being Tuesday there was no crowd. In fact there were only three others in our loop and maybe two more in loop A. If someone were planning to come for several days I would recommend one of the campgrounds in the northern part of the park.  The boulders, as you will see, are dramatic.  These campsites are not necesarily friendly to large rigs, though Sharon did report today that they had gotten in on year and found a spot.  Just don't expect many choices for anything over 4 feet.  We arrived before noon and after setting the rigs we took my car for a drive through the park.  

If you don't like pictures of rocks and large dry spaces don't worry about clicking through the following.....



Back in Phoenix, I had asked Patrick the horse wrangler what those clumps growing in the trees were. He said that it is wild mistletoe.  Birds carry the seeds and deposits them  in the trees.  As I drove past the trees at the entrance of the park it is evident that birds like some trees much better than others.  Patrick also said that what ever tools are used to cut the mistletoe out of the trees must be cleaned carefully because the mistletoe can be spread so easily.


Yes, it really does look this neat.


There were two roads heading off from the highway offering to take drivers down to two old mines......Honda Fits are very handy cars but put this one down as .... "The road not taken...."





The information said there might be sheep on some of those mountains. Liz looking for sheep.



Use your imagination and drive the cattle with your horse as you move them up the valley to the other grazing area beyond the hills.


And then there were the boulders.   I liked the boulders.


 Liz liked the boulders, too.






When you grow up in the midwest.....lets say some state like Ohio, it is easy to take the land and all the things growing around you for granted.  The land here in the park reminds me just how old this earth is.  From the oceans that no longer exist and the mountains of rocks that have been eroded  away leaving just large giant boulders behind.   This land was here so long before us and will be here long after the blink of an eye that is our existence.


This is a campsite, in case anyone is wondering.




Hikers on the top.


A Joshua Tree .


From the Overlook.  That dark line in the middle of the valley is the San Andreas Fault .




This is a view towards the south. From here you can see the Salton Sea and as far as the Mexican border.


This one is for my son.  Apparently there are folks in California that like matching pajama sets, too.



Hikers heading up. And one hiker, out standing on her hill.


Another hiker, outstanding on the trail.   We both decided the mile loop up to Barker Dam sounded more doable than the hike straight up the hill above.



This is the face of the small dam that was built to catch the rain fall and provide a reservoir for the stock that grazed these lands 100 years ago when there was more moisture and grasses in the valley for cattle.  The small lake doesn't have mush water in it at the moment but for an arid land a little water is better than no water and does attract birds and wildlife. 



This is the original old water trough. There was a pipe that brought the water down from behind the dam to deliver the water to the stock.


 
This is the range that once supported the cattle. Climates change.  As the deserted ranches (and Indian ruins) across the dry southwest show.....those subsistence communities that long ago realized that there was no longer enough water and grass to provide..... 



 




And the next morning the sun rose early and Liz and I were off to make our way on to our friend Sharon's driveway and find even more adventures.



2 comments:

  1. I love the Joshua trees - some of my favorite desert plants.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great pictures. Fantastic scenery. The magic pass is real nice.

    ReplyDelete