When we arrive in the Joshua Tree National Park after our stop in Quartzsite it is already late afternoon, only one hour or so from sunset. We ask at the Cottonwood visitor center about Joshua trees but the closest are about half hour away so we give up and decide to explore closer attractions in the National Park like beautiful Cottonwood Springs.
We don’t have time today for the full two mile loop so we hike to the palm grove to explore it, take a few photos and then it is time to move on back towards the interstate.
The second stop is close to the interstate and the southernmost point of interest in Joshua Tree NP, the Bajada Nature Trail. Here we do hike the whole small loop to see the interpretative signs and maybe some birds.
The trail is quite beautiful at sunset and we even see a few birds are can show our relative some of the more interesting and iconic plant life in the desert.
And then it is time for our 3+ hour drive to Dana Point through the very busy interstates in the Greater Los Angeles area. We are happy when we make it to our AirBnB without a major stoppage incident and then it is time to enjoy the four bedroom AirBnB and go to sleep as tomorrow we have a very busy day.
