One More Day, One More Park Together

Brain cancer is...

 ...a master negotiator.

In my vacation spreadsheet, Palm Desert showed as a one-night stopover to break up the drive from Tucson. 

You know how this story goes, right?  At lunch yesterday, Darrell opened his big brown eyes wide and asked for one more night of vacation.  Another night, reasoned Darrell, would allow us to hike in one more park together on this trip.  Sigh.  

Above you see us in Joshua Tree.  And so we spend tonight in Palm Desert for (I mean it this time!) the last night of our vacation.

We know Joshua Tree is a local favorite.  Darrell has memories of camping there, and my mom says we kids wore out our pants sliding down Jumbo Rocks.  But today was the first time we visited it together.  We learned tons. For instance (context setting), we learned that the United States has four deserts.  Today, in the Park, we hiked in two of them.

We entered via Cottonwood in the south, in the Sonoran Desert (specifically the Coloradan Desert).  We saw wildlife...

 ...and wildflowers...

 ...and lots of vegetation...

...like Yucca and Ocotillo, but no Joshua Trees. 

We hiked the Mastodon Loop, which includes a scramble (hiker talk) to Mastodon Peak.  Here's the view from the top.

We drove north through the Cholla Gardens.  That's a lot of chollas!

Welcome to the Mojave Desert and...

...Joshua Trees!  This photo was at Jumbo Rocks.  We ended our final park visit with the hike at Hidden Valley.  No wonder it's so popular.

It certainly made us smile!

We happened upon the Cork Tree and had a very elegant grand finale dinner.  We reflected on this magical trip and its myriad of surprises.  Every day we have seen things we did not expect.  We've learned lots...about the world, our country, and ourselves in these two and a half weeks.  

The conversation over dessert (apple cinnamon tart with homemade vanilla caramel ice cream) turned to our Darrell and Andi Trip Awards.  Sample categories include Best Breakfast, Best Overall Hike, Best Kept Secret Place, Best Sleep, and Best Balcony.  That conversation continues, and we welcome any suggestions or nominations from you, Loved Ones.  

We appreciate having you to share this trip with...and to give us a reason to come home.

See you back in the OC, Team D!