Last stop of the day is at Painted Canyon, a beautiful natural area to the east of Palm Springs. We decide on the canyon as we hope that it is shaded and we really want to visit another scenic area before we return. From the beginning the canyon is impressive as the road weaves into it to the busy parking lot.
As we walk through the canyon we notice lots of rock slides that have happened through years, it is not a good place to be in when a block the size of the car falls into the wash.
As we enter deeper into the canyon it gets wilder, narrower and more scenic. There are also fewer people which we enjoy.
It even becomes almost a slot canyon with ladders and difficult sections. We do not have time today to fully explore but we really enjoy this section.
This is not a place to be when water is flowing, there are trees and vegetation everywhere being brought by the flood waters.
Why is it called the Painted Canyon? It is quite obvious really as we walk through the area during the Golden Hour which brings out the reds and the yellows in the mountain side.
As we find caches and explore the area we find also some interesting objects like remnants from an abandoned car and a geocache in the form of a duck which we really like.
The sunset here over the Salton Lake is quite beautiful and we enjoy the great views before returning to the car and driving the three hours back to Phoenix after quite a beautiful celebration of New Year in the Palm Springs area.
