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The Joshua Tree
This unusual looking tree was named by Mormon pioneers after the prophet Joshua because the branches of the tree reminded them of the prophet waving his arms to the people, toward the promised land. These trees are native only to Southwest USA. The Joshua Tree thrives in the higher and cooler Mojave Desert, at above 3000 ft. It comes from the family of yucca (Yucca Brevifolia) and it distinguishes itself by its height. It can grow as tall as 40 ft and it can live for 1000 years. I find them very picturesque looking but I have a friend who refused to take a picture because in her opinion "they are ugly" ;)
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Joshua Tree Flowers
A Joshua Tree propagates both by pollination and by sending out long underground roots and sprouting new plants from those roots. In general pollination is better because they can spread over larger areas. The trees rely on the a specialized moth for pollination and no other insect or bird transfers the pollen from one flower to another. Without the moth's pollination, the Joshua Tree could not reproduce, nor could the moth, whose larvae eat the Joshua Tree seed. The white or greenish flowers can appear from March to May, but they require just the right combination of temperature and moisture, and several years may pass without a major blooming.
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Cholla Cactus Garden
In the eastern part of park, which is the Colorado Desert, the most widespread plant is the creosote bush but in a few areas you'll be able to see the cholla cactus. The Cholla Cactus Garden is one of these areas where the chollas dominate the landscape due to favorable goundwater conditions. A 1/4 mile loop trail winds through the patches of chollas. You can pick up an instructional leaflet near the entrance ($0.25 donation suggested). You are instructed not to touch the cacti (and I'm sure a lot of people try to hug them) which look fuzzy and inviting - their common name is teddy bear cholla - but they can surely sting. The leaftlet talks about plants and animals of the desert. One interesting and well-adapted little fellow is the desert wood rat which makes its home among the cholla cactus joints.
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Ocotillo Patch
About 1.5 miles farther east from cholla cactus garden you'll find the the Ocotillo Patch (which is actually nothing more than a patch). The Ocotillo is a tall shurb, also a member of the Colorado desert flora. I thought it looked interesting and worth the short stop.
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Barker Dam Trail
Barker Dam trail is a 1.5 mile loop that goes through some beautiful scenery. The first part of the trail, up to the dam, cuts through a narrow canyon leading past many granite boulders (which my buddy felt inclined to climb every 20 feet or so). This place is called Wonderland or Rocks and the name fits. This canyon lead to a small reservoir surrounded by steep rock formations and boulders. At the turn of the 20th century settlers built a 20-foot long, 10-foot high dam to fully enclose the area and used the water for horses and cattle. We were there in February and there was plenty of water present forming a small lake. Below the dam is a circular watering structure built by for cattle. The second part of the trail passes through a terrain full of crooked Joshua Trees, looping past some petroglyphs.
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The petroglyphs
Along the Barker Dam trail, there is a display of petroglyphs etched on the walls of a granite overhang. The reason they look so visible and clear is because in the 1950's a movie crew shooting a Western on this location painted over them to make them more visible to the camera (what a stupid thing to do). For this reason I read somewhere that the park calls these paintings the "Disney petroglyphs".
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Ryan Mountain Trail
The Ryan Mountain trail is a 3 miles roundtrip leading to probably the best views in the park. The trail begins at Ryan Mountain parking area and climbs steadily. With a 1000-foot elevation gain over only 1.5 miles it will make you sweat a bit but it's over so quickly that you won't get tired. On the other hand, now that I think about it, when we climbed it the weather was cold, a bit rainy even. If you are doing this hike in the summer than that's another story. I guess I would rate it as a moderate hike. The trail is well maintained and easy to follow. Along the way, except for the valley floor view, you'll be hiking among boulders and small Joshua trees. At the top you'll get an outstanding 360 degrees view from this 5,470-foot peak. You can see Queen Valley, Wonderland of Rocks, Lost Horse Valley, Pleasant Valley and some far-off mountains.
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Skull Rock Trail
Joshua Tree National Park is not only famous for the Johua trees but also for its rock formations. Skull Rock is one of those weird looking rock formations which looks losely like a human skull. The rock sits very close to the park main road, so in order to see it you just need to cross the road from the parking lot. But if you want to see other weird looking rock formations you can turn it into a 1.5 miles hike along a loop that winds to the south and north of the park road. The south part of the trail has interpretative signs that point out the desert flora. The path turns north at the Jumbo Rocks campground and you'll have to follow the campground entrace road and cross the park road to get to the second part of the trail which completes the loop. Here you'll pass among giant, rounded rock formations and you'll be tempted to forget the trail and try to climb the big boulders. Finally, the trail brings you back to the Skull Rock parking area. There's almost no elevation gain on this trail so it's an easy one.
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Key's View
Keys View offers a sweeping sight of a beautiful valley with mountains in the distance and on clear days the vista extends all the way to Mexico. This fantastic lookout, located at 5185 ft, is accesible by a road going south from the main park road. Below you lies the Coachella Valley, from Palm Springs area to the Salton Sea. To the south and west you can see Mount San Jacinto (10804 ft) and San Gorgonio Peak (11.499 ft) the highest point in Southern California with their peaks covered with snow. It's definitely worth the drive. As you can see from the picture we got there just in time. Five minutes later the fog had hidden everything from sight.
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Hidden Valley Trail
Hidden Valley Nature Trail is a 1 mile loop through a natural enclosure formed by rock formations. Cattle rustlers are believe to have used this area in the 1880s for hiding stolen cattle. There are thousands of gigantic boulders and this places attracts a lot of climbers. In fact this place seemed to be the climbing hub of the park as we saw much more people climbing here than in other areas. The trail winds between the massive boulders. Nice views, I took about 50 pictures of this place (ignoring Cris's protests) all of them showing weird shaped boulders :)
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Oasis of Mara
The Oasis of Mara provides a home for park headquarters and Oasis Visitor Center. The oasis was first settled by the American Indians who called it Mara, meaning "the place of little springs and much grass". Early American survey parties arrived in the 1850s and found the area under cultivation by the indians. Later, at the beginning of the 19th century, prospectors started to move in and the Indian families began to drift away. Today the oasis is a great place to start your Joshua Tree visit. Behind the center, a short paved nature trail loops past trees and shurbs. The trail provides a quick education: interpretative signs point out desert flora and talk about the history of the oasis.
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