Joshua Tree National Park

Our neighbors, Jerry (Ol' Jer) and Wanda, invited us to go hiking and backpacking in Joshua tree National Park.  They knew the park well, and took us to some spectacular areas.

We spent Monday and Tuesday morning doing shorter hikes in the park.  We first explored Hidden Valley, where cattle rustlers hid stolen livestock.

Jerry led us up a steep pile of boulders.  This area of the park is famous for it's immense heaps of granite boulders exposed by erosion.

Pictures have a hard time showing the fantastic forms these boulders make.

These are high cliffs that rock climbers really enjoy.

I was so elated to see my first chuckwalla in the wild!

The chuckwalla is the largest lizard in the Mojave Desert.  If threatened, it will run into a crevice, inflate it's lungs, and wedge itself in so tightly that it can't be pulled out.

We passed by this dozing Smurf on our next hike up Ryan Mountain to the summit.

We had great views of the desert below.

I spotted this pretty Side-blotched Lizard along the trail.

Dead tree.

Gail and I at the top!

We could see dust storms down by Palm Springs, and the snow covered peaks of San Jacinto and San Gorgonio Mountains.

Gravity at work.

There were numerous tent caterpillar colonies around the park.

We stayed overnight at a motel in Yucca Valley.  Tuesday morning, we hiked around Barker Dam, a man-made pond built in the late 1800's as a water supply for the ranchers.  Rainfall back then was around 10 inches a year, but is now around 3 inches.

This is the pond and water hole for many desert animals.  There are several palm oasis in the park, also.

There were many different plants in bloom, like this well-armed cactus.

It's me, Fred Flintstone!

Western Fence Lizard.

Midday Tuesday, we set out on our overnight backpack mission.  We followed a trail for awhile, then went cross country towards areas of  huge rock piles.  Those trees are....  Joshua trees!

We had to carry all the water we would need - about 6 quarts each.

We love our tent for it's ease of putting up, but a few more inches of width would be nice.

Jerry and Wanda came over to check out our campsite.

Back at their site, Wanda the bartender, mixed up some "poontang", a mix of Tang, water, and Bacardi 151 - very efficient for backpacking.  We had great laughs during our prolonged happy hour - our reward for hiking through the desert!

As sunset neared, a reddish glow bathed the rocks.

A small barrel cactus looking like a nest.

Time to head back to camp and heat up some dinner.  We then slept until 9:30, got up to watch the moon rise, and do some night photography.  The next few pictures were taken from about 9:30 to 11:30 at night.  Most exposures were for about one minute.

Wednesday morning, Jerry and Wanda headed out early, while Gail and I stayed the morning to wander the area.  Above, is what I believe to be a Black-throated Sparrow.

Another Side-blotched Lizard.

Photography stand-off.

Gail matches the trunk while photographing this Joshua Tree.

We're not sure about the numerous hummingbirds we saw, but could be an Anna's or Black-chinned hummingbird.

San Gorgonio Mountain, off in the distance.  It is the highest mountain in Southern California at 11,503 ft.

A new bird for us was the Phainopepla.  We saw a couple nesting in mistletoe.

In flight, their wing tips flash white.

In case you didn't know, I love lizards!

Me, prowling around, looking for snakes, etc.

My new friend, a barrel cactus.

At first, I thought this strange plant was a piece of rubber or plastic, but then I started seeing more of them.  They are rooted to the ground at one end.

These Painted Lady butterflies were very intent on getting minerals from this coyote scat.  We saw this occurring at another spot, later.

Leaving the rocks, as we hike back out.

At the visitor center is this Joshua tree made out of mostly Mylar balloons.  These balloons drift from as far away as Los Angeles, 140 miles away, and are mistaken for food by animals such as desert tortoises.  The results can be deadly. It is estimated that about 71,000 a year get snagged in Joshua Tree National Park.

Below, Gail artfully shows some of her splendid photos of the amazing plant life we saw.