Blast from the Past

When I was a kid many, many moons ago, my family did a lot of trailer camping.  Every summer we would take off and explore the western U.S. for two or three weeks. It was always fun and my love of camping was born then and there.  My parents loved camping and the desert.  So in addition to our summer excursions, every Easter and every Thanksgiving we would leave the city and head to Joshua Tree National Monument (it wasn’t a national park back then).  We always camped at the very primitive Indian Cove Campground, no facilities just pit toilets. Those holidays were the best.  My mom would cook a complete turkey dinner with all the trimmings or plan an Easter egg hunt in the campsite.  Sometimes my grandparents would come and they would stay in this old motel by the highway.  All of us kids would climb the rocks throughout the campground and wave at our parents from high above on the rocks.  It was a wonder none of us were seriously hurt or we did not give our parents a heart attack.  Wonderful memories!!

Thanksgiving at Indian Cove Campground, 1965.

One of my favorite pictures of my little brother, Ken.  He had been working on that Turkey leg for about 2 days and was ready to be done with it!

Fast forward 50 years and our first stop on this vacation is at, wait for it...........Indian Cove Campground.  I am very happy to report that you can go back and inside the campground has changed very little.  There is still no electricity or water, but the bathrooms are nicer pit toilets (called "vault toilets" now) and there are now recycling bins next to the trash cans.  Kids (and adults) still climb the rocks but now they scale the face and the climbing spots have fun names like “Silent Scream”, “Walk on the Wild Side” or “A Cheap Way to Die”.

Today's campsite.

Bill attempting to climb "Silent Scream"

The change to the area outside the campground is another story.  The towns of Twentynine Palms and Joshua Tree were little more than a gas station stop back then.  Not so much any more!  There are shopping malls, fast food establishments, a hospital and homes galore. The change is dramatic!

Our first stop was at the Visitor's Center to purchase my Senior Citizen Pass (yes, I am so happy for those discounts) and to get my passport stamped, of course.  They had an awesome tortoise stamp which has become my new favorite stamp (sorry cool banana slug stamp from last year’s Olympic National Park).

Look he is smiling!

 National Park Drive into the park has some very elaborate sculptures in the center median.

Our first stop was the Cholla Cactus Garden on the western rim of the Pinto Basin. The "garden" is approximately 10 acres of cactus.   From a distance the cholla cactus looks to be covered with soft, silvery bristles which accounts for its common name, "teddy-bear" cholla.  However, the spines are tipped with a sharp barb which without the least provocation will brutely attach itself to the unwary.  Hence, the origin of its second nickname, "jumping cholla". 

Ouch!

 From there it was short drive to Skull rock and a quick nature hike to Jumbo
 Rocks.

Skull Rock, man that is a big forehead!

Bill taking a picture of Skull Rock.

 We continued the drive through the park and through a "forest" of Joshua Trees for which the park is named.

 

 All in all it was a wonderful, nostalgic beginning to our latest adventure.  Thank you Bill, for indulging in my trip down memory lane (although you too have memories of camping here as a Boy Scout and teenager).

Today's 3 Fun Facts.

     1.  The Chollo cactus propagates both sexually and asexually (thank you Bill, ever the teacher).

     2.  Joshua Tree National Park is a transition zone between the Mojave and Colorado deserts.

     3.  You can relive those precious childhood memories.