Photo Blog with Waterfalls, Hiking, Outdoors, and other Adventures
From Mastodon Peak I continued on the trail to Lost Palms Oasis. This is an in/out trail going about 3 miles each way. The trail winds through many different types of landscape – hills, sandy washes, patches of rocks, and just about everything in between. Damages from flash flooding in October has blocked off the … Read more
Today’s afternoon trek would be a long one starting at the far southern entrance at Cottonwood Springs. Parts of the road & trail were closed due to flood damage but you could access the trail via the Cottonwood Campground. The trail starts by winding through a sandy hike through the lower lying fingers and has … Read more
From Arch Rock I continued south on Pinto Basin Road. It’s Friday meaning the park is filling with weekend visitors and I wanted no part of the crowds. The southern entrance gets far less traffic and should give me some peace. This post is a bit “odds and ends” that don’t fit elsewhere so I … Read more
Still overcast this morning so no sunrise views. Took a short drive south from the campground to check out the Arch Rock Nature Trail. Parking at the Twin Tanks backcountry trailhead makes this a short bit longer than signs indicate. The trail first crosses flat desert and is mostly unspectacular. This section is only about … Read more
Skies were looking a little “iffy” tonight so I just chilled at the campgrounds lazily trying for astro photos. Early on skies were mostly clear. No galactic core this time of year but it never gets old sitting under dark skies. (Don’t forget to click photos for detailed full-screen views!) Wispy clouds started rolling in from … Read more
Final stop for the day was a race against sundown to hike the box canyon at Hidden Valley. One of the plaques along the nature trail details how this was once a forest covered in trees and is now relict or restricted to a smaller area than was once found. Not really much to say … Read more
From Keys View I stayed on the western side of the park and hiked the short 1 mile Barker Dam Nature Trail loop. Overall this hike is quite flat & easy. Much of the area is covered in sand or bare stone with minimal rock hopping. Although if rocks are your thing, this is a … Read more
Drove down to the southwest part of the park for panoramas at Keys View atop the Little San Bernadino Mountains. An informational sign gives basic info and details how haze/pollution can limit views across the Coachella Valley. Looking southeast from the sign on a clear day you might view the Salton Sea some 20 miles … Read more
Quick stop at a popular attraction called Skull Rock. Assuming you can find a parking spot on the roadside pullout, access is extremely easy by walking about 100 feet. Why is it called Skull Rock? Pretty obvious but it looks like a skull. Shocking right? Some trails run through here but I passed to get … Read more
Lunchtime was over and it was back to the trails. Right across the street from Live Oak was the popular Split Rock Loop. Split Rock itself can be found right behind the trail head sign. Probably the best info sign I have seen yet, this one carried a simple message: “THIS IS A COOL PLACE … Read more