California‘s Joshua Tree National Park is something from another planet, or at least that’s how it seems. In my mind, the park always had a cloak of mystery and sometimes even darkness wrapped around it, the very place where Charles Manson and his followers hid out, where curious druggies experiment with peyote and where extraterrestrial enthusiasts claim to have spotted UFOs.
After visiting for myself, I’ll admit the landscape is pretty otherworldly. Abandoned piles of rock, precisely-cut peaks, bold clouds forming unusual patterns in the bright blue sky, barren landscapes full of odd-looking Joshua Trees, twisting branches reaching up out of gravel and dirt. At certain times I was transported back to days hiking around Chile’s Torres del Paine, a beautiful yet eerie national park appearing like something out of a Tim Burton movie. At other times in Joshua Tree National Park, I found myself envisioning the books of Dr. Seuss, and the way he loved to draw characters and plants with fluffy mop cuts.
There was one reason we visited Joshua Tree National Park: to hike. We stopped at the Visitor Center upon arrival to pay the parking fee — $15 per vehicle — and get some information on the local trails. There are a lot of Joshua Tree Day Hikes to choose from, all varying in length, elevation gain and ability level.
In the end, we decided to summit Ryan Mountain, a “strenuous hike” (I found it to be moderate, maybe only slightly strenuous) 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) in length. From the top, which is 5,461 feet (1,664 meters) high, hikers enjoy vistas of the Lost Horse, Queen, and Pleasant Valleys.
Overall it took my boyfriend and I about 2.5 hours round-trip, including lots of photo taking. I recommend bringing a picnic lunch to enjoy at the top, as it’s peaceful — we didn’t see many other hikers — and there are birds that fly over the mountains and get really close to you. It’s just a really serene setting worth spending some time in. Moreover, make sure to bring lots of water. I personally drank 64 ounces of water during the hike, and it wasn’t extremely hot out.
Photo credit: waringis.com.
Jessica Festa is the editor of the travel sites Jessie on a Journey (http://jessieonajourney.com) and Epicure & Culture (http://epicureandculture.com). Along with blogging at We Blog The World, her byline has appeared in publications like Huffington Post, Gadling, Fodor’s, Travel + Escape, Matador, Viator, The Culture-Ist and many others. After getting her BA/MA in Communication from the State University of New York at Albany, she realized she wasn’t really to stop backpacking and made travel her full time job. Some of her most memorable experiences include studying abroad in Sydney, teaching English in Thailand, doing orphanage work in Ghana, hiking her way through South America and traveling solo through Europe. She has a passion for backpacking, adventure, hiking, wine and getting off the beaten path.
