BudgetTravel

Day 2: Desert Hot Springs to 29 Palms

The coffee at Emerald Springs is exceptional--can it be the water? An elderly couple from Milford, Conn., believes in its power. For 25 years now, they've wintered in Desert Hot Springs solely for the rejuvenating effects of a good soak.

Jumbo Rocks campground (Joshua Cogan) NOVEMBER 2006 ISSUE • Table of Contents • Laos: A Tour That Even Loners Can Love • Buenos Aires . . . Then What? • Road Trip: Joshua Tree • Trip Coach: Switzerland • 40 Best Vacations

Josh and I hop in the car and head east on Highway 62, toward the West Entrance of Joshua Tree National Park. At nearly 800,000 acres, the park straddles two distinct deserts: the Mojave in the north, marked by craggy Joshua trees and moon-like rock formations, and the Colorado in the south, with wide-open vistas and jagged mountain peaks. Between the two lies the transition zone, with features from both plus cholla cactus gardens and patches of spidery ocotillo.

In the town of Joshua Tree, we stop at the Joshua Tree Visitor Center and grab trail lunches at the neighboring Park Rock Café. The "health-nut special" is just right for a long day in the desert--cheddar cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and red onion with basil pesto on multigrain bread. There are no concessions inside the park, so we buy lots of water. The Park Service recommends one gallon per person per day, two gallons apiece in the summer.

It immediately feels as if we've been transported to prehistoric times. Boulders the size of dump trucks sit near spiky trees, and the air is fragrant with lavender and chia, which smells like sage. We're only a few miles into the park and already we're scoping out rocks to climb. At Quail Springs Picnic Area, we pull over near a sign that explains how bighorn sheep can go without water for 14 days. Interesting enough, but all we really care about are the rocks. We begin our ascent with carefully placed steps but can't avoid getting on all fours as we lumber up the granite formations. At the top of the biggest rock, we scan the desert for wildlife--the park is home to jackrabbits, coyotes, and bobcats, plus a population of birds that includes golden eagles and red-tailed hawks--but all we get are trees and boulders.

We drive on to Hidden Valley, popular with advanced climbers--sure enough, two fearless friends are scaling a sheer rock face. Josh and I decide that the Barker Dam nature trail is more our speed. The sandy path, just over a mile long, leads past turbinella oak and California juniper to one of the park's few man-made attractions, a small lake where ranchers used to feed their livestock. It's now a watering hole for desert animals and migrating birds. After snapping photographs of the surrounding area, aptly named Wonderland of Rocks, we explore the trail's end--or whatever the opposite of a trailhead is called--which is marked by red, black, and white petroglyphs left by migrating Native Americans.

Keys View, by far one of the park's best panoramas, is about five miles south. At nearly 5,200 feet above sea level--and despite a slight haze--we can see the entire Coachella Valley, including the Salton Sea, the town of Indio, and the San Jacinto Mountains.

While eating our picnic lunch at Jumbo Rocks campground, we talk to a crunchy couple from Vancouver, camping with their 10-month-old son, Viggo, and an adventurous foursome from Cincinnati, who have just returned from off-roading through a muddy riverbed. Afterward, we go to Skull Rock nature trail--named for a large anthropomorphic formation--and scramble over as many rocks as we can. Josh and I agree: We would've loved this place even more back when we were kids.

In Twentynine Palms, we've reserved a room at the Harmony Motel--where U2 stayed when they worked on The Joshua Tree. It's dingy at best, but hey, that's rock and roll. For dinner, we go over to the poolside restaurant at nearby 29 Palms Inn (we would have stayed there if it hadn't been fully booked). I opt for the pasta primavera, made with vegetables from the inn's garden, and Josh digs into teriyaki chicken, brushed with a tangy homemade sauce.

Lodging

Food