Tom Stienstra - Moon California Deserts Camping & Hiking: Including Death Valley, Mojave, Joshua Tree and Anza-Borrego

Contents

The campgrounds are listed in a consistent, easy-to-read format to help you choose the ideal camping spot. If you already know the name of the specific campground you want to visit, or the name of the surrounding geological area or nearby feature (town, national or state park, forest, mountain, lake, river, etc.), look it up in the index and turn to the corresponding page. Here is a sample profile:

The icons in this book are designed to provide at-a-glance information on activities, facilities, and services available on-site or within walking distance of each campground.

Hiking trails

Biking trails

Swimming

Fishing

Boating

Canoeing and/or kayaking

Winter sports

Hot springs

Pets permitted

Playground

Wheelchair accessible

5 Percent Club

RV sites

Tent sites

Each campground profile employs a scenic rating on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the least scenic and 10 being the most scenic. A scenic rating measures only the overall beauty of the campground and environs; it does not take into account noise level, facilities, maintenance, recreation options, or campground management. The setting of a campground with a lower scenic rating may simply not be as picturesque that of as a higher rated campground, however other factors that can influence a trip, such as noise or recreation access, can still affect or enhance your camping trip. Consider both the scenic rating and the profile description before deciding which campground is perfect for you.

Each hike in this book is listed in a consistent, easy-to-read format to help you choose the ideal hike. From a general overview of the setting to detailed driving directions, the profile will provide all the information you need. Here is a sample profile:

The icons in this book are designed to provide at-a-glance information on the difficulty and quality of each hike.

The difficulty rating (rated 15 with 1 being the lowest and 5 the highest) is based on the steepness of the trail and how difficult it is to traverse

The quality rating (rated 110 with 1 being the lowest and 10 the highest) is based largely on scenic beauty, but also takes into account how crowded the trail is and whether noise of nearby civilization is audible

Trails rated 1 are very easy and suitable for hikers of all abilities, including young children.

Trails rated 2 are easy-to-moderate and suitable for most hikers, including families with active children 6 and older.

Trails rated 3 are moderately challenging and suitable for reasonably fit adults and older children who are very active.

Trails rated 4 are very challenging and suitable for physically fit hikers who are seeking a workout.

Trails rated 5 are extremely challenging and suitable only for experienced hikers who are in top physical condition.

This book is divided into chapters based on major regions in the state; an overview map of these regions precedes the table of contents. Each chapter begins with a map of the region, which is further broken down into detail maps. Sites are noted on the detail maps by number.

BEST CAMPGROUNDS

Waterskiing

There is no region so vast in California yet with fewer people than the broad expanse of the California deserts. Joshua Tree National Park, Death Valley, Mojave National Preserve, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park each of these respective areas has distinct qualities, separate and special, yet they are also joined at the edges.

On a fall evening, you can take a seat on a ridge, overlooking hundreds of square miles of landscape, and just look. Every few minutes, youll find, the view changes. It is like watching the face of someone you care for, one minute joyous, the next pensive, then wondrous, then mysterious.

The desert is like this, always changing the way it looks, just as the sunlight changes. The reason is that as the sun passes through the sky, its azimuth is continuously changing. In turn, that causes a continuous transformation in the way sunlight is refracted through the atmosphere and across the vast landscape. So, especially at dawn and dusk in spring and fall, the desert looks different from minute to minute. For those who appreciate this subtlety, the desert calls to them in a way that many others do not understand.

Joshua Tree National Park features a sweeping desert landscape edged by mountains and peppered with the peculiar Joshua tree. It is best known by most as the place where the high desert (Mojave Desert, 4,000 feet elevation) meets the low desert (Colorado Desert). This transition creates a setting for diversity in vegetation and habitat. The strange piles of rocks often appear to have been left there by an ancient prehistoric giant, as if chipped, chiseled, and then left in rows and piles.

The national park is far different than Mojave National Preserve. The highlights here are the Kelso Dunes, a series of volcanic cliffs and a forest of Joshua trees. It is remote and explored by relatively few visitors. The Mojave is a point of national significance because it is where three major landscapes join: the Sonoran Desert, the Colorado Desert, and the Mojave Desert.