This review is for Ladder Canyon & Painted Canyon Trail which was a ~4.4 miles round trip that took…read more~2.5 hours to complete. Ladder Canyon & Painted Canyon Trail was a popular and crowded hike near Mecca, California. Trail was flat and sandy while you're at the bottom of the canyons. Started the loop clockwise; look for the ladder on your left. Requires a little bit of rock scrambling at this part and some ladders to get to the slot canyons. Trail becomes a bit more rocky with a slight incline towards the top of the canyons. Furthermore, there was a rope and ladder near the end of the loop. Overall, this was unique trail with stunning views throughout the hike! Required to drive on a well maintained dirt road for ~4.6 miles. Low clearance cars could make it; go slow and dodge the bigger bumps as you get closer to the parking. No restroom at the trailhead! Short video of the hike for those interested! https://youtu.be/7HECQHARzvs

I went there on April 6, 2025. There's 7 cars at parking area. I ran into 6 hikers while I was on…read morethe trail. It's quiet and really enjoyed the nature. Gloves and hiking boots are game changers. Last 2 miles are very rocky and sandy, so it's hard to walk. I forgot my sunscreen and sunglasses.

Fun hike that was on the drive back for us. Really wanted to do 49 palms but had no time and this…read morelooked like an interested hike. If we didn't have a senior citizen and 2 kids with us we would have gone for the whole thing. It's a long 7.5 mile hike if you want but we weren't able to get too far into it because of timing but the nice thing is the giant palms are right in the beginning! Here are some nice things you can see without getting too far deep: -The palms right at the beginning, if you go a little past them there is a small path where you can get right into the middle of them and climb up a little platform into a totally "secret" and secluded area. I would go into here and not just look at it from the outside. -On the right side there are stones that Native Americans used to use for grinding down seeds, herbs, etc... You can find these distinct holes and get right up to them. -The desert plants are amazing at the beginning of the hike, some we didn't see anywhere else at Joshua Tree.

+ Cool place to encounter a real oasis and a closed mine. So…read moreglad I do my research before embarking on my adventure, so I can anticipate cool attractions such as this hiking trail. Surprised to witness so much greenery and shade in the middle of the desert, as well as mines, a glimpse into history. + Plenty of parking.

Grateful for the well paved footpath to show you around the cholla cacti and keep guests a safe…read moredistance away from those gnarly jumping spikeballs. It's a short peaceful walk. Gets a good amount of visitation. Little to no shade.

The best spot in Joshua Tree National Park! Sunrise is an…read moreabsolute MUST, one of the most beautiful i've seen! Walking around the cacti is trully magical any time of the day. Only downside no restrooms or water nearby so come prepared.

The least favorable of the three entrance portals into Joshua Tree (the other two being Joshua Tree…read moreVisitor Center & Joshua Tree NP Cultural Center). - No potable water refill station at this visitor center; the staff told me to go to the restroom to get it. yike. My stomach's more sensitive despite having already exposed it to plenty germs, so I still have to prefer the more filtered water. - Less to see at Cottonwood Spring visitor center. Less displays and amenities. Smaller than the other two.

One of the best spots in Joshua Tree National Park for wildlife - especially birds! I've never seen…read moreso many quails on a trail in all my years birding - it was wonderful! And I saw a gorgeous Black-throated Sparrow for the first time here too! The short, flat, sandy trail is easily accessible but there are several other trailheads in this spot if you want to extend your explorations. The Cottonwood Spring is actually a result of earthquake activity. And while I didn't see any water and the wash was dry, there were plenty of signs indicating water is somewhere nearby. There are huge stands of native fan palms and wispy, beautiful Cottonwoods all throughout the wash - along with tons of bugs, bees, and all the other thirsty creatures. Apparently in heavy rains the dry sandy wash becomes a flowing river with a waterfall! The spring season brings wildflowers and the autumn brings the fall colors for the Cottonwoods. Local Cahuilla people called this area home for centuries and you can still clearly see the bedrock mortars they used along the trail in places. Prospectors and miners also used the spring as a water stop on their way from Mecca to northern mines. This spring area was first mentioned in a gold mine claim filed in 1875 so there's lots of history here surprisingly. There are three main trails originating in this area- the short and flat Cottonwood Springs wash loop, the longer and more elevated Mastodon Peak, and the even longer and harder Lost Palms Oasis trail. Due to time constraints I was only able to spend a couple of hours here but definitely would've loved to have more time to explore - especially Mastodon Peak. Cottonwood Springs is located just down from the visitor center at the south entrance - so you won't see any Joshua Trees as those are all in the northern parts of the park. But it's still definitely worth exploring. And there's a campground about 1/2 mile away with picnic tables and bathrooms. There are also portapotties at the visitor center nearby. The roads in this area are paved, well maintained, and there is plenty of paved parking at the trailhead. The National park charges a fee to enter with pay stations on the way into the park and a nice gift shop in the visitor center.

The Salton Sea is really unbelievable. Haven't really ever heard of it before my mom moved to La…read moreQuinta 14 years ago. But after hearing the stories, I had to go. Recently, it finally came true. When you finally get your sights on it, it's more unreal. The lake is about 15 by 35 miles at its widest and longest. So, it's HUGE, and there's a hell of a lot of water. Sure, it's getting smaller, but still. If you go, you should decide to go on the West or East side...because it's very far to go all around. My mom and I went east, but I think there's more to see on the west side (which has Salton City, Desert Shores, Salton Sea Beach). What we did see was a few "campgrounds", former structures, and the highlight -- Bombay Beach, an little town with some artistic endeavors, but mostly low income and off-grid living. It's just not healthy to live nearby this. It has a little market and an old motel, the Ski Inn, that is now a coffee shop and dive bar. It wasn't very smelly on a 75 degree day, but I'm sure it is in the heat of summer. It's both marvelous and a engineering disaster. I asked Siri a million things while driving, but I'm left with more questions than answers.

It's my second time to visit this desolate place in two years because of its art installations. The…read moreart is amazing and quirky that makes Salton Sea Beach a nice getaway spot and admiration. Unfortunately, the sea is receding fast, nevertheless its environment is breathtaking! As long as interesting and quirky art installation continues, Salton Sea Beach will never be a desolate place.

Large park with baskets placed around the perimeter for disc golf. 9 holes set up that are 9…read moreforward and 18 when you return in the reverse order. (Same holes repeated backwards). Not a very difficult course, the biggest obstacles are the trees in front of the holes/baskets along the course. It's approximately 30ish minutes from downtown Palm Springs. Wasn't busy at the time of our visit.

Desert Disc Golf on Hovely Lane!…read more ----- Concise Review Nice Course Great location in town Part of a soccer park with many soccer fields, so you may need to "adjust" for the soccer teams... you may need to skip holes and returns to them later. Well maintained Family fun ----- Longer Review We have played frisbee for a long time. Our son is on his school's Ultimate team (think "frisbee football"). We have a disc course in the park in town. We visited Southern California - Palm Desert, Yucaipa, and Malibu - for Spring Break 2021. Before our trip, a quick search found The Palm Desert Disc Golf Course / Hovely Disc Golf and Soccer Park. Mid-trip we visited with our cousins. We decided to play a round before dinner. We didn't consider that we would arrive in the "after school / before dinner" time... on a Wednesday... which in March meant that there were quite a few teams practicing soccer. That's ok... we adjusted. We couldn't play each hole, for we'd get in their way. We did play several holes and had fun. While the course is relatively flat, it is challenging. For the most part, the disc golf holes are on the "upper parking lot level" and the soccer fields are somewhat lower elevation, down a short hill. Most, but not all, of the tee boxes are at the same elevation. The course designers/builders did a nice job. There are plenty of man-made obstacles, from pavilions to light poles for soccer and palm trees. There is a good mix of distances on the holes. Any time playing disc golf is good. It's even better in the desert. Thank you Palm Desert Disc Golf Course / Hovely Disc Golf and Soccer Park. ----- ----- -----

The owner, Randall, claims to have a masters degree in natural resources management and who…read moreobviously loves the environment very much. For him to believe "chem trails" are controlling the weather and "both sides were too evil" to vote for Harris, I was astounded. (The first page of a Google search on "Chem trails" only returns how it's a conspiracy theory) If you're not against them, you're for them. I'd be interested to see how Randall feels when they start drilling for oil or the developer who already owns property we drove across finally gets approval to build his golf resort. If I hadn't already booked and paid for this experience, I would have passed. Also, there are only a few months where the weather is mild enough for the tortoises (if there are any left) to be found, so don't expect to see much wildlife. While the rocks and mountains were lovely and we enjoyed the silence, it is mainly a tour of the surroundings. Set your expectations appropriately. Nice enough guy if you only want to have someone drive you around. In case you found him through "Visitpalmsprings" he does not have EV ATV's and our average speed was 26 MPH not 10-20 MPH as noted. I was impressed with how smooth the gas ATV was over many bumps, but this isn't as "chill" (his web site) as it seemed it was described. Update: I think politics does get included in this experience. Your web site clearly states your concern (very real) for the environment and animals in it and you back it up with multiple advanced degrees in natural resources and ecology leading me to believe we are aligned in how we (the population) are to protect this beautiful place and these amazing animals. When I arrive and learn you believe some secret group is controlling the weather with chem trails... Have you taken this conspiracy theory back to your professors and run it by them? You didn't have an answer when I asked, "Who makes the money by stopping the rain? If they can stop the rain, they should be able to turn it back on, why don't they do that?" If you're going to posit this conspiracy theory, you should really have the full nonsense available. This is a microcosm of what not voting for Harris turns into. I'm not sitting around being polite to those that are going to cause very real harm to women, hard working, tax paying working immigrants AND the environment when our sacred lands are drilled to look like swiss cheese. You should change your web site to say, "I'll take you for a ride in the desert while it's still here"

The perfect adventure only a few miles away from Joshua Tree! I was looking for something fun to do…read morefor my birthday and came across this experience in my search. Definitely found a gem! Plus I think it's a relatively safe experience with the guide riding in his own ATV and he even said he tested himself right before with negative COVID results. Randall was awesome from start to finish. He's super knowledgeable about the area with some cool history facts along the way. Overall, he was a really chill guy and constantly checked in to make sure we were having fun. And he's great at taking pics and videos. I was impressed at how he was able to hold a phone with one hand to film us driving behind him during some of the bumpier sections! We even got to check out some tanks on the way back from Operation Desert Storm. Our 3-seater ATV was a bumpy ride in a good way. Some of the roads even felt like you were going on a rollercoaster at high enough speeds! I had a ton of fun on this experience and will definitely be recommending to my friends.

It was our 2nd day in Palm Springs and I have always wanted to get on a Hot Air Balloon. My friend…read morebeing 15 years older than me was very scared. I had to convince her a whole day prior to going to Balloons Above. I had done a few searches from different companies and landed with this one. Boy it was a good one in every way! So let me give you a little update on how this works. A shuttle bus comes to your hotel, picks you up and you head over to the destination. The ride was a good 40 minutes away from our hotel. So worth it. We were picked up at 5:15AM and got there at 5:40AM. The balloon flight lasts about 45 minutes to an hour. Imagine how exciting it is. (Well, it was for me). During the whole time, my friend was clinging on to me like a little baby will cling on to his/her mom. After the end of our journey, she thanked me like 100 times and said that "she was glad that she got on it". We shared the balloon with another couple. It was their 10 year Wedding Anniversary. If you share the ride/flight with other people, it's $150 per person. If you go solo, than I am assuming it's half the price. Our captain Mike was very nice, pleasant, knowledgeable & engaging about the whole experience. It is kind of hard to speak when you are so high in the air. We were going very slow and every 10 minutes he was adding more helium for the balloon not to deflate. He had our best interest and kept making sure that we were comfortable and safe. The views while we floated were simply breathtaking, beautiful, and peaceful. Weather was just perfect! We were floating above the landscapes as the sun came up. It was truly a fantastic, remarkable, fascinating, an admirable once-in-a lifetime experience!!! The highlight of the day was that we landed totally at a different place. Not from where we were picked up. Another highlight was that because of us being fearless, courageous and brave, we each got a certificate and they opened up a bottle of Champagne to celebrate.:-)) Had some blueberry and banana muffins and gave each one of us small candy bars. (bite size). We also got some fruit. What a nice gesture. It was on them. Everything was planned correctly and executed from beginning to end! Will I go back? Absolutely YES!! In conclusion-- Balloons Above in Indio is a perfect way to celebrate any occasion with style and class.. It truly delivered. Reservations are a MUST and I highly RECOMMEND this company to anyone who likes to do things like this!!! Thank you pilot Mike and Balloons Above! Loved it!!