Vivien and I have made many trips from our home in Phoenix Arizona out to the coast of California. From San Diego in the south to San Francisco in the north, twice a year, the ocean waves have always pulled us from our desert dwelling. On those trips west, with our beach destination fixed in my mind, I would pass the exit for Joshua Tree National Park, off I-10 West bound, going 85MPH, and would often say "next time," I'll have to budget some time to stop by and check out the park. Over the years, I had heard so many wonderful things about Joshua Tree NP - the great camping, the out worldly rock formations, the lovely hiking trails, the smaller crowds when compared against its Grand Canyon sister a couple hundred miles to the northeast.
Joshua Tree National Park, Southeast California, circa December 2019
Joshua Tree National Park is 1238 square miles(792,510 acres) of protected desert lands in southeast California, halfway between Phoenix and Los Angeles, and about 40 miles northeast of Palm Springs. About 3 million people visit the park each year. It became a National Park in October of 1994, after being made a National Monument in 1936 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It's characterized by rugged rock formations and austere desert landscapes. It’s named for the region’s twisted, bristled Joshua trees. The park straddles both the Colorado and Mojave Deserts.
Joshua Tree National Park southern entrance via Cottonwood Springs Road
That "next time" finally came this past Christmas when, instead of heading to the coast, we I decided to vacation in Palm Springs California. A get acquainted road-trip to nearby Joshua Tree NP was finally and firmly on our schedule.
Little could we have predicted that our day trip would be on the morning following the night when the park had experienced its’ biggest snowfall in over 10 years. It's so much better to be lucky than good. Early on the morning of our scheduled visit, we had gotten a text message from one of our friends back east (PA), telling us that they had heard about the possibility of snow in the park. They had visited it earlier that year, during the summer, when they found it to be a pretty but very parched desert landscape. They were curious what it would look like with snow covering the surrounding mountain range. We promised to keep them posted.
It was an easy 40 miles drive from our Palm Springs hotel to the Park. It was only when we were within a couple miles of the park's entrance that we fully realized that we would be celebrating a winter wonderland of day, and we were fortunate to be joining many others in the festivities.
With many of the parking spaces inaccessible because they were covered with snow, there were minor traffic tie-ups at all the popular visitor overlooks. Everyone was going gah-gah over the snowfall, and contributed to a vibrant winter in the park vibe.
We stopped frequently and I trudged out into the snow to get my fix from taking snow-pics. During one of the stops, while I was out in the middle of a vast snow field, I recalled the last time I had stood in snow this deep. It was 15 years earlier. I was in New Jersey, and it was only a couple of hours after I had buried my mother and returning from taking my Aunts to the airport for their return flights home, when the Northeast got hammered with a massive snow storm. Even days afterwards, I had much trouble finding my mom's fresh grave, it was covered with so much snow. I had gone back to cemetery to say one last goodbye before flying back home to the warmer and bluer skies of Arizona.
But this day in Joshua Tree NP were much happier times, the freshly fallen snow a soul cleanser, nature’s way of blessing me with beauty.
We are making plans to visit Joshua Park NP again this year. While we don't expect to get snow-lucky twice, we do expect to get in a little more exploring, a lot more communing with nature and with any luck, more beautiful pictures. When we do, I promise to tell you all about it.
Until then, peace be with you.
Derrick