Hello and welcome to episode 20 of the Ready Set Depart podcast! I’m so glad you’re here.

Let me ask you a question—have you ever visited a place so weird and wonderful that you thought, “There is nowhere else like this on Earth”? That’s exactly how we felt on this trip.

We didn’t expect it, but Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California has officially become our family’s favorite National Park. From funky desert towns to glowing cactus at sunrise, this place completely surprised us and I can’t wait to tell you why.

So, why did our family fall in love with Joshua Tree? Let's talk about it. 

Joshua Tree is weird. 

There's no other way to describe it - Joshua Tree is weird. With the plants that give the park its name and the let's just say, unusual towns around it, there's really not another place like Joshua Tree. 

People in and around the Park march to the beat of their very own drum and it's fun!

We loved all of the themed restaurants and funky gift shops. There's even a farmers market on Saturdays where I hear they often have emu eggs for sale! I'm not sure if you're meant to eat them or raise them but it would be interesting to see!

Joshua Tree is a climber's dream!

While Trooper has never been a huge fan of climbing rocks, he LOVED the rocks in Joshua Tree. They're a type of granite - called Pinto Gneiss to be exact - that makes climbing them a bit easier. Although, through my eyes, I think it makes getting a skinned knee easier as well but who am I to talk. 

But let’s let Trooper tell you about his own experience.

Joshua Tree has some fun hiking!

But here's the kicker. It's the desert! We went in October and it was 90° by 11 am so keep that in mind. Go early or late to get cooler weather. Winter is probably the best time to go if you don’t love the hot. Fall and Spring can still be hot and summer is just brutal!

We definitely enjoyed our siestas in the hottest part of the day!

Here are our three favorite hikes but there are a ton more so definitely take a look at their website to find ones that would work for your family. 

The first hike we did was Skull Rock. Skull Rock is a rock formation that does truthfully look like a skull, but perhaps an alien one. It’s an easy walk to Skull Rock from the parking lot but there’s also a 1.7 mile loop that goes through the desert around the area. It was BUSY but a nice walk, especially if you get started earlier when it’s not so hot!

When I was researching Joshua Tree, I kept reading about people hiking (though it’s honestly not much of a hike - just a ¼ trail) Cholla Cactus Garden at sunrise. They said it was life changing. How could watching the sunrise over cactus be life changing? We had to find out.

So, here we are, rolling out of bed at 4 am to get in the car and drive 20 miles along somewhat scary roads to the Cholla Cactus Garden. To get our lives changed. It was still pitch black when we got there, but we used our newly bought headlamps - because we forgot our headlamps at home - to pick our way through the very spikey cholla cactus to a good place. There were a few other people around but for the most part, it was completely quiet. 

Then the sun started to light up the horizon. And it was beautiful. And we thought, this is amazing! Maybe not life changing, but definitely amazing.

And then the first rays of the sun hit the very prickly Cholla Cactus and our lives were changed. We will never look at cacti the same way. The needles basically glowed. It was enough for a wiggly 4th grader to sit and watch for a while too.

But here are some suggestions if you do go to the Cholla Cactus Garden “hike”. (Though remember, my definition of a hike is that there is dirt under your feet so I guess that this one qualifies.)

Wear closed-toed shoes because not only are the cacti very prickly and there are a lot of them, but they drop those prickles. You do not want to have to pick them out of your toes!

Bring a headlamp or flashlight for when you first get there. 

Do not touch the cholla cactus! I know someone who fell and got some of the spines in her hand and they had to be surgically removed. No thanks!

Go. Even though it’s early and even though your kids may complain and even though the road is a bit scary at times. Go. It will be something you think about for the rest of your life!

Arch Rock is an easy, 1.4 mile lollipop trail that takes you past Heart Rock. We easily found Heart Rock but it was a bit harder to find Arch Rock because it was getting dark by then. But we did find it, with the help of some other hikers, and enjoyed some rock scrambling to watch the sunset. On the walk back out, we saw some of the animals that the area is famous for but we’ll talk about that in a minute.

Speaking of sunsets, Joshua Tree is a dark skies park.

What does that mean exactly? It’s a Park that isn’t affected by light pollution. One where you can see the Milky Way (at the right times of year) and stars much easier.

And Joshua Tree is one of those parks. It is truly amazing to watch those stars start to pop out as the sun goes down. We weren’t there at a good time to see the Milky Way, but it would be amazing if we had been!

Joshua Tree has the Junior Ranger Program.

And you know how much we love the Junior Ranger Program! We learned a lot of geology with this one. Like the inclusions that Trooper talked about. We also learned about Joshua Trees - the yucca that grows like a tree - that gave the park its name. 

Joshua Trees have been around forever! They are pollinated by the Yucca Moth, but they used to rely on the giant ground sloth to eat their fruit and distribute their seeds far and wide. Do I need to explain how? I hope not. 

But Joshua Trees have outlived their seed distributors so people have been helping out a bit lately. Camels have been used to haul the seedlings and water throughout the Mojave Desert to help spread the seeds farther than they normally could. 

It’s amazing the things you learn from the Junior Ranger Program!

Joshua Tree has limited cell service.

Now stay with me here. It’s true that cell service is wonderful when you need it! But if you’re like us, your kids, and you, can sometimes get a little overly involved with the cyber world rather than the real world. So, going somewhere where there is no choice but to be in the moment can be kind of nice, right?

Don’t forget to save your map in Google Maps so you can still use the GPS even when you’re out of cell range!

Joshua Tree has some pretty interesting animals!

We are a family of animal lovers so seeing unusual animals is such a draw. You can see road runners, desert tortoises, bats, kangaroo rats, tarantulas, coyotes, etc, etc, etc. I was really hoping to see a road runner on our adventure. Sadly, we didn’t see one.

But we did see a glimpse of a kangaroo rat, which was cool. They do hop just like kangaroos but they aren’t related to them. 

We did see a pallid bat on our dark hike back to the car from Arch Rock. I didn’t love that because I’m not a fan of the dark, but it was interesting once I was safely back in the car.

We did see a lot of lizards of all varieties, though not the gilla monster that would have been kind of cool.

So, come for the unusual animals! You never know what you’re going to see!

Joshua Tree is accessible from some bigger cities, though you’re still in the middle of nowhere.

Palm Springs is about an hour away from the Park and there’s an airport there.

San Diego is only about 3 hours away from the Park, which isn’t bad, though the traffic can be crazy on Friday afternoons.

And LA is only 2 hours as the crow flies, but if you’ve ever driven in or around LA, you know that traffic is for real!

If you come from San Diego or LA, you can make a quick stop at the Cabazon Dinosaurs. They are these giant dinosaur statues that they often paint for the season or just for fun. When we stopped by, the t-rex was painted like Pee Wee Herman - just google it if you don’t recognize the name - and the apatosaurus was painted green with polka dots. It’s a fun, quirky stop!

Oh, and I can’t forget to tell you about some really good pizza to be had in Joshua Tree, the city, not the Park. It’s at Sky High Pie. Trust us, you’ll love it!

So, if you’re convinced that Joshua Tree needs to be on your National Park list, here are some things to not forget: Sunscreen and a hat because you are in the desert! Closed toed shoes to keep those cactus needles out of your feet! A headlamp or flashlight (with the ability to be a red light for stargazing). A water bottle - the potable water is a bit few and far between in the middle of the Park. Your sense of adventure because this place is out of this world!

But, Joshua Tree isn’t just about hiking trails or funky roadside attractions. It’s about the little moments you remember forever. Like your kids climbing boulders bigger than houses, or sitting quietly as the desert wakes up at sunrise, or laughing when a bat swoops a little too close on your hike back to the car.

Those are the memories that make travel worth it.

Before we wrap up, here’s what we talked about today:

• The quirky vibe of Joshua Tree and its funky shops

• Climbing, hiking, and our favorite trails—Skull Rock, Cholla Cactus Garden, and Arch Rock

• The magic of stargazing in a Dark Sky Park

• What we learned from the Junior Ranger Program

• The wildlife that makes Joshua Tree unforgettable

• Travel tips, from sunscreen to closed-toed shoes to pizza in town at Sky High Pie

You know, one of my favorite parts about traveling is holding on to those little memories—whether it’s your kids climbing rocks bigger than houses or sitting in silence as the desert wakes up. That’s actually why we started making our Ready Set Depart stickers. Each one is designed to help you capture those moments and remember the places you’ve been. They’re perfect for water bottles, travel journals, or even your car’s rooftop cargo box. You can check them out at here and grab one that reminds you of your favorite trip. It’s such a fun way to keep those travel memories close, even when you’re back at home.

Thanks so much for joining me today. 

And remember: let’s keep making traveling with your family easier, one trip at a time.