You know me, can't pass up on cheap airfare. I think I'm drawn to it subconsciously. When $29 airfare to Palm Springs popped up on my alerts, how could I say no? We've never been there, so why not?
This was on Allegiant Airlines who flies out of the very small airport in Provo and would our first time on Allegiant. I knew the seats were tight, but for a 1 hour 6 minute flight, I think I could handle that, especially for $29.
We really didn't think that many people would be flying from Provo to Palm Springs - it's a pretty random location to be going to from Provo of all places.
Wow, we were wrong.
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| This was the waiting room before going through Security when we got there. Actually, this was the ENTIRE check in area, pre-security area and waiting area. I told you it was small. We went through security which was one machine and then there was a larger waiting room which filled up and then some. Standing room only in fact, and people were standing in every corner and every piece of the floor. This flight was going to be packed! The plane was full and hardly any seat was vacant. Why are all these people going to Palm Springs? |
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| A little over an hour later, we arrived at Palm Springs - and the airport is outside! Our first stop the next day was Joshua Tree National Park which is just over an hour away UP in elevation which was surprising and is in part of the Mojave Desert. We didn't expect much from Joshua Tree, maybe a few cactus trees/bushes and really, what else would there be to see and do? We were wrong.  This was the best I could do to get a pic out of the dirty car window. Sorry.   Do you see the people rock climbing down/up on the top right?  Our first stop was a small group guided tour that you had to reserve ahead of time. We parked at a locked gate on a dirt road and then were let in to a not usually accessible part of the park. Keys Ranch. William Keys was a homesteader and came to this area in 1910. I wasn't really sure what a 'homesteader' was before this. The US Government wanted people to move West so if you were to move to an area, and live there for 5 years on your own, the government would give you the land. Lots of people tried to be successful homesteaders, but few were successful. William Keys was one of the few successful ones. He started a cattle ranching business and raised a family in this high desert. He dug wells, built fences and houses. Over the years, others who tried to be homesteaders, failed and William Keys would go to their ranch and take all their stuff and bring it back to his. Over time, he collected all kinds of things and used this to his advantage by trading and selling the items. Many came to this area to mine gold in all of the boulder mountains, but none really made much money. William Keys knew the mining was hard work with little payoff, but he provided the mining teams and mining operations with equipment and he rented out a rock/ore crusher and washer to them and even a stamp mill. He was pretty smart and resourceful. He lived there until he died in 1964. He and his wife had 7 kids but 3 of them died shortly after birth. He was still living there when the area became a National Park and he wouldn't leave. The Keys Ranch is a tour of his property and it's pretty much the way it was when he died in 1964 with minimal disruption.    This is inside one of his sheds showing all the stuff he'd 'acquired' over the years   There were several cars, trucks and tractors laying around too that he'd collected. When he started in 1910 of course, there were no cars there, but over the almost 60 years he lived there he used them to power windmills which powered water pumps.     This was their large garden which provided them with food. Back when they lived here, there was more rain than there is now, but still - this is the Mojave Desert!  This is the kitchen of their home         Before the area was a National Park, it was a National Monument and people would come visit. The Keys family was still living here and they saw an opportunity. Mrs. Keys would collect small and colorful rocks she found and would set them out on these tables for visitors to buy souvenirs and artifacts.     There is no running water, electricity, cell service here.....so this was our rest area - two at a time only please!      This is part of the 'junk yard' where William Keys organized and displayed all his things. There were so many items laying around, but they were all organized. I imagine he knew where everything was. Need a hinge? Small? Large? He has it. Need some bolts? screws? He has it. This was the first Home Depot.    He built this rock crusher - horses or cows would be attached to the ends of the poles and it would crush bigger rocks into smaller rocks before they put the rocks in the stamp mill. William Keys never used it himself - he just rented it out to the miners. Smart.   They built a small schoolhouse and the teacher lived in this small area upstairs  The Keys Ranch tour was impressive and well worth your time to go  Next we went on a short hike to "Barker Dam" which was upstream from Keys Ranch. William Keys helped Mr. Barker build a dam to create a small reservoir in a natural valley for a water supply      Here is what is left from the dam. It still holds water and there was actually some mud and green plants all around it!  VIDEO:   We then went to Hidden Valley, another short mile or so hike to an area that remained hidden until 1936. William Keys was looking for more space for his cows to feed. He came across this valley which was hidden between two huge boulder mountains with no other way in. It was a lush and green valley. He had to blast a trail in to get to it  This was part of the valley he saw and bought his cows over to pasture. It would have been very green and lush then. Even now, looking like this, it is 100x greener and more lush than any of the surrounding area. It was much cooler in this area too          You have to stop at Skull Rock (not sure why it's called that). This was the most crowded place we saw. There were a lot of people there  Our next stop was not planned, but when I looked at the park map, and saw a place call Hall of Horrors, of course we had to stop and see what that's all about. Before we lost cell service, I quickly looked it up and saw it was a small slot canyon - not marked, no trails and you're on your own to find it. There was a good number of cars parked here - maybe 25 so surely we'd be able to find where all the people were  We headed down a trail following the footsteps in the sand. We didn't see anyone for about 15 minutes and then we finally saw some people emerging from the top of one of the boulder mountains  This is where they were going - down about a 6 foot drop and then in this small slot canyon. It didn't look like much, and not worth getting down and back up the initial drop, so we didn't go down it  Instead, I looked to the right about 10 feet and saw a small opening hidden behind a bush. I went through the bush and saw what I really think is the real hall of horrors. A much longer, narrower and more exciting slot canyon than the one everyone else was going in. I told Shelley to come through the bush and we both explored this area -we were the only ones there. EVERYONE else went into the fake hall of horrors ha ha..silly them  There were two areas that were pretty narrow - I barely got through but Shelley breezed through  We explored for about 15 minutes and then exited the slot and realized we were now on TOP of a very large, huge boulder mountain with no way down. We searched around for a way down and couldn't find one that we felt comfortable attempting, so we went back the way we came. Again, we were the only ones in there. When we exited out the entrance, and looked the "fake" area, it was full of people - nobody went where we did.  Here I am going past the bush that hides the entrance  Take a deep breath! VIDEO: The next day we went to the Living Desert Zoo and Gardens that has over 150 different animals - mostly from Africa and other parts of the world. It was pretty impressive - kind of like a mini San Diego Africa Zoo. We thought it might have some small porcupines and rodents and such. We were wrong.     The kangaroo exhibit was completely open - we walked around and were eating, sleeping and hopping all around us!      This place was pretty good, very clean and the larger animals had very large and natural enclosures. The animals seemed happy! |
We had planned to take a break at the hotel or go biking or something for the rest of the day, but the weather was changing and supposed to be much much cooler and possibly even a little rain the next day. Well, the next day we had planned on riding the Palm Spring Tram up to the top of a state park which sits at almost 8500 feet elevation. The temp at the top is about can be 30-40 degrees cooler than the temp below. It was running around 85 today, and only going to be 70 tomorrow, so that would put it about 40 at the top of the mountain tomorrow. We opted to go this afternoon when it was warmer.
We thought this would be a short little ski-lift type tram up a few hills.
We were wrong.
It's a 12 1/2 minute (2 1/2 miles) ride to the top. The floor of the tram cars rotate slowly so everyone can see the view. These are the world's largest rotating tram cars.
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| The wildflowers were all in bloom |
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| Yep, there was some snow at the top and on some of the trails in the shade. It was about 50 degrees up there |
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| For all you young readers, this is an old fashioned 'pay phone' you put in quarters and make calls on it |
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| We did the Desert View Loop easy hike |
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| Back down |
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| This is where we went! |
VIDEO: The way up was pretty quiet - nobody talked and everyone just enjoyed the view. We thought the way down would be just the same.
We were wrong.
We had a crazy driver on the way down. He went super fast over the towers, he spun us around really fast, and almost made us go upside down! Ok, maybe not, since all he does is push GO and STOP.....but he did turn the ride down into a PARTY TRAM!
The video is 5 mins long, less than half the ride, but I think you get the idea. Pay attention to the following times: 1:40 when we pass over the first tower - the car really does sway more than you'd think. 2:20 when we pass the other car going up. 3:30 going over another tower. Do this video full screen.
There is a lot of art in Palm Springs. The next morning we went looking for some of the ones close by. We thought we might see some sculptures and paintings.
We were wrong.
We saw this:
The faceless babies with barcodes as their faces. It's supposed to be a statement on the influence of big tech and big data on our lives and the dehumanization of society.
We then went for a 2 mile loop hike to Tahquitz Canyon / Waterfall. A large part of Palm Springs and surrounding cities are Indian land. The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians has called Palm Springs home since forever. Even with the hot weather and little rain, there was enough water in springs to create a 60' waterfall in Tahquitz Canyon. There is no shade on the trail, so don't do this hike in the summer. We thought it would an easy stroll.
We were wrong.
There were large boulders to go around and over, and hundreds of rock stairs to go up and down. But the waterfall area was beautiful and worth it.
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| We saw a good number of mountain goats along the trail |
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| About half way up and through the canyon, we came to a stream and followed it the rest of the way |
This where the hike starts and ends. You would never ever guess through this canyon is a green lush area with a waterfall!
Our last stop was not one, but TWO Palm Oasis areas. We were expecting maybe a small group of palm trees clustered together around a water source.
We were wrong.
These areas were in "Indian Canyons" and like the waterfall area, was the ancestral home of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians.
The first oasis was simply called Palm Canyon. It's the largest palm oasis is the world and is FIFTEEN miles long! No, we didn't hike all of it. But it was amazing and the middle of nothing - the middle of rock mountains with no vegetation at all! The water source is from springs and runs year round.
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| We drove through "split rock" |
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| This is the beginning of the oasis. Notice the lack of anything else growing on the mountains on either side. It was like that the entire way VIDEO: |
Just down the road a few miles, was Andreas Canyon and guess what? This oasis is the 2nd largest. It has a mile and half looping trail that follows a stream through the palm trees.
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| This is how everything looks for miles and miles..... |
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| And then.....water...and palm trees |
That night we left and headed home.
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| Once you pass through security at the Palm Springs airport, you are then outside! We rode back with the same people we rode there with, since Allegiant only flies twice a week. |
Allegiant loads the plane from the back and front at the same time and it's super efficient. So is getting your luggage from the Provo airport.
You wait outside and they bring it to you like this and you grab it off the cart.
From landing and getting in the car was less than 15 minutes!
We had a great trip and learned new things to do in Palm Springs and learned we had a few pre-conceived misconceptions we might have been wrong about.
