Joshua Tree Day 2

Six o'clock came really early, even though we were in bed by 10 pm. Since the park was so busy yesterday, we really wanted to get in early. Mom made pancakes and we were on our way by a few minutes after 7. We completed ten hikes throughout the day, and the boys did really well. That may sound impressive, but two of the hikes only ran a quarter mile. 

The park was a lot more empty, and we enjoyed the hikes a lot more. Not only that, but we saw a lot more wildlife. At one hike called Barker Dam, we spotted a desert cottontail, a massive squirrel, and a bunch of small, black chipmunks. There were also a bunch of birds. The coolest was a woodpecker called a ladder-backed woodpecker. It looked a lot like others we've seen, but the spots on its back were organized in rows and columns. There are phainopepla, which the boys call black cardinals. There are plenty of others like juncos, wrens, and ravens, too.

Joshua Tree quickly became a favorite national park.

Keys View Overlook

Seth loves climbing everywhere.

Cap Rock Nature Trail was a great little hike.

Taking a rest on the rocks.

Seth likes to try many poses on our hike pictures.

After a few hikes in the main part of the park, we headed south. Our first stop was Arch Rock. This hike was too busy the day before. In fact, it was getting very busy again. The hike was fun, though, and we waited in line to get our pictures at the arch. Afterward, we climbed and scrambled around, taking pictures wherever we thought it would be cute. Mom was a great scrambler, but Seth climbed up, around, and over everything. The rocks in Joshua Tree are really fun, and the footing on the conglomerate rocks is good, making this a great place to climb.

Joshua Tree has so many cool rocks.

We even got a family picture at the arch rock.

We loved the landscape.

The boys were in heaven climbing around.

Such a fun place.

Mom and Dad even got a pic together.

Can you spot Seth?

Further down the road, we came to the Chollas Garden. We only walked around for a few minutes, but there were thousands of cactuses growing all in one spot. Some of the cactuses were coming into bloom, and they grew so thickly together! It was very unique.

There were so many of these cacti growing in one spot.

We made the long drive all the way down to Cottonwood Springs. There is a Visitor Center, and Mom made lunch in the parking lot. Then we turned in our Junior Ranger booklets and picked up a patch from the park. Though we did two other short hikes in this corner of the park, there wasn't much to see. Everyone but Mom fell asleep on the long ride back, which was lucky since she was driving. 

Our feet were definitely tired!

Dax and Seth weren't really up for another hike after the long day, so when we stopped at Split Rock, they were more than reluctant to get out of the car. The rest of us made the 2 mile loop around Split Rock. We went really fast and got back to the car in about 45 minutes. It was unique to do this hike with just the adults, and the boys were fine in the car.

Split Rock

It was fun to hike with Mark.

Just a guy eating some ice cream.

We enjoyed the Split Rock trail. 

It was lovely evening for hiking.

Mom loves spending time with her boys.

We had just a little time before sunset, so we drove out of the park, and then back in. The north entrance has a campground at a place called Indian Cove. There is really nothing else in this area, except for a short hike. The hike was nice, but the most interesting part was Dax finding a small melon. A quick Internet search taught us that this is called a coyote melon. Dad was reading about the melon and Dax was holding it proudly when Dad finished, "If you find this melon, do not touch it, as it is extremely toxic to the skin and can causes severe rashes, and in rare cases, death." Dax dropped that melon like a hot coal before he noticed Dad laughing his head off! Then we cracked it open and found it to be much like a cucumber. We didn't eat it, of course, even though coyotes do.

Indian Cove was so cool.

The dried up coyote melon.

A fresher coyote melon.

A beautiful spot!

It was almost dark before we got back to the house for dinner. Mom made pasta while we all rested our feet. Then the boys pulled out an old game of Trivial Pursuit. Seth won the first chip, but everyone scored at least one. Finally, we got to bed, ready to head up to Death Valley early.

We sure have fun together on these trips.