Home is where the heart is. And for Jill L Reed, there is no place like Joshua Tree, where she grew up and now goes back to regularly to live her memories
Sure, I am a city girl now. But I grew up in the desert, and it will always hold a special place in my heart and soul.
The way the soil crunches underfoot is different in Santa Ana, California, USA. The blue of the sky and the warmth of the sun, they just feel different there.
And don’t even get me started on the way it smells in a rainstorm.
I have an emotional connection to the place I called home for the better part of my first 18 years.
Joshua Tree. There is no place quite like it. And though my family is long gone from the area, I am compelled to return sometimes, even just for a quick trip down memory lane.
Now that I am a parent, I wanted to have my son, Ben, four, see the place how I saw it as a kid. This included a trip to Joshua Tree National Park, of course. But we also made a point to see places where my dad liked to take my sister and me when we were kids.
He wanted us to enjoy where we lived, and to embrace some of the quirkiness that makes the desert so special.
Monumental memories
When I was growing up, we called it The Monument. From 1936 to 1994, it was Joshua Tree National Monument, a vast expanse of rocks and stubborn desert vegetation. I still slip on occasion and call it The Monument, though it is now in its 20th year as a national park.
This was a natural stop on the trip, giving my four-year-old a chance to get out and scramble around on some of the lower rock formations. As he did that, I pointed out specks moving up and down the rock faces of larger formations. This is a haven for rock climbers of all ages and skill levels.
The kid had fun finding shady little niches in the rocks and calling them his caves. There are many great places to stop, and we tried a few locations in the park. But it turns out his favourite spot was the Skull Rock area, a spot I also loved as a kid.
I like to use the west entrance, near the town of Joshua Tree, and head east all the way and through the north entrance to Twentynine Palms. But people who want more information before they venture into the park should head to the visitors centre in Twentynine Palms and enter the park from there.
Joshua Tree National Park (visitors centre)
74485 National Park Drive, Twentynine Palms, California
Phone: 760-367-5500
Website: nps.gov/jotr
Building a dream in the desert
Tucked up against the south side of the Little San Bernardino Mountains, east off of Highway 62, is Desert Hot Springs. The city is famous for the hot springs that offer respite and relaxation to tourists year-round.
Local lore gives credit to one man, Cabot Yerxa, for discovering the hot waters that gave rise to the community. Yerxa is a legend in the area, a wanderer and adventurer who homesteaded 160 acres of land that seemingly had no water supply.
He dug a well, hoping to tap into a water source. He did just that, finding hot water in one well and cold water in another nearby.
With water discovered, the area suddenly became much more hospitable, and Yerxa began a long and laborious process of building a home on the site. It is a home he worked on from 1941 until his death in 1965, when he was 81.
Today, his Hopi-inspired home is a museum that showcases the history of the area and the life of an interesting character who was an artist, collector, writer, builder and family man.
The grounds outside offer an eclectic array of artefacts and art. Yerxa built the home largely from reclaimed materials and sun-dried brick that he made himself.
Though only part of the 5,000-square-foot home is available to tour at a cost, the grounds are open and free to visitors. But the interior tour is worth the time and money for those with a true interest in the history of the desert.
Cabot’s Pueblo Museum
67616 E. Desert View Ave., Desert Hot Springs, California.
Phone: 760-329-7610
Website: cabotsmuseum.org
Give me a sign
Beware of dog. Really. This place is of the look-but-don’t-touch variety.
It is the steel sign garden of a man named Benjamin Bottoms. He is an artist who likes to save old things, signs in particular.
Bottoms, from all I have read of him, is notoriously private. Yet what he has created at the corner of Old Dale and Pine in Twentynine Palms is an homage to things that once were so public.
The Oasis. Round Up Room. Josh Lounge. Desert Paradise Motel. It is a mini sign graveyard.
I happened upon this several years ago on a desert pilgrimage. I do not linger long here. I want to see it, but I want to respect the solitude of the spot, as well. It’s not more than a drive-by or a quick stop to look at little bits of desert history through a tall, chain-link fence.
With a big dog on the other side. Beware.
Benjamin Bottoms’ garden
Old Dale Road and Pine Avenue, Twentynine Palms, California.
A touch of the Old West, Hollywood-style
Want to walk in the footsteps of Old West movie legends? Or maybe just find a fun spot to stop for lunch?
Head north from Yucca Valley up a winding road into Pioneertown. It was built in the 1940s, and performers including Roy Rogers, Gene Autry and Annie Oakley and the Sons of the Pioneers starred here.
The dusty drag called Mane Street is lined with Old West building facades and wooden sidewalks.
From April into October, the Gunfighters for Hire, a group of Old West re-enactors, put on shows at Pioneertown. Check gunfightersforhire.com for dates and more information.
Even without the show, it is a neat place for kids to visit. There is even a six-lane bowling alley that opened in 1949 where Roy Rogers used to tape his show.
And if you’re hankering for a place to whet your whistle, stop into Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace for libations and Tex-Mex food. The restaurant is the former cantina site of the movie set and now is a popular eatery and concert venue.
Pioneertown
Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace
53688 Pioneertown Road, Pioneertown, California.
Phone: 760-365-5956
Website: pappyandharriets.com
Dinny and Mr Rex
Anyone who has driven east on the 10 toward Palm Springs has seen Dinny and Mr Rex looming in the distance.
Dinny, the friendly looking apatosaurus, was created by Claude K Bell, a sculptor for Knott’s Berry Farm. He started work on the large beast in 1964, with work lasting 11 years.
To give Dinny some company, Mr Rex, with his fierce face, was built in 1981.
The famous dinos have been featured in movies and music videos. These desert icons are truly a landmark.
And while this roadside attraction is campy, it is fun to stop even if just to get a picture. Those with a bit more time might climb the stairs into the gift shop inside the belly of the apatosaurus, where trinkets and display items are sold that make clear the creationist beliefs of the owners. Whatever your beliefs, it is a site to see.
The four-year-old was fascinated by the dinosaurs and wanted to see more. So we decided to spring for admission to get behind the fence that houses the entrance to Mr Rex.
Once past the gate, we paused to look at a small display inside another gift shop. We also wandered past smaller dinosaur sculptures of various sizes and types before reaching the main attraction: the chance to get up inside the mouth of the T Rex.
Though I had stopped to see the dinos many times in the past, this was my first time inside T Rex’s mouth. It was as perfect and kitschy and touristy as I could have imagined.
After a main set of stairs, a smaller spiral staircase drops you into the blood-red jowls, ferocious teeth lining the view out.
Truthfully, once you reach the top, there is not much to do. But the picture of Ben making his most ferocious face in that setting was worth the price of admission.
World’s Biggest Dinosaurs
50770 Seminole Drive, Cabazon, California
Phone: 951-922-0076
Website: cabazondinosaurs.com — The Orange County Register/MCT
COLOSSAL: For people who have never travelled to the desert cities, the dinosaurs of Cabazon may come as a surprise. For people who make the trek regu
