Thursday, October 18, 2018

Boy Scout Trail

I hiked Boy Scout Trail back in March with my cousin, and I must say, it was a very fun hike! It's been on my "to do" list for literally years. One of the really cool things about the BST is I can start the hike at the trailhead deep in Joshua Tree National Park and hike right to my house! It's also great to hike with my cousin. We share many of the same passions (including hiking and photography) and really enjoy each other's company.
BST is not a loop. You can either start at the trailhead in the Park (just off Park Blvd.) and hike mostly downhill to the end of the trail in Indian Cove (which is what we're doing today). Or if you're crazy you can hike it the other direction going uphill most of the way. It's best to get dropped off at the trailhead so you don't have to worry about going back to get your car once you complete the hike. Starting at the trailhead off Park Blvd., you hike in a northerly directions toward the town of 29 Palms and Highway 62 (see map). Our hiking path is the blue line on the map. Please ignore the straight diagonal line. Not sure what that's all about, but it wasn't us!

Cousin Scott at the BST trailhead just off Park Blvd as we begin our hike. We had a rare cloudy day which was perfect for hiking and actually had some light sprinkles for a while.

For the first couple miles, the hike couldn't be simpler... straight, level trail through the Joshua Trees. Probably too small to see, but there are three ladies climbing the big rock in the middle of the photo. Look closely and you can see one standing on top of the rock.

A little clearer view of the rock climbers.

Hi, Scott!!


After a couple miles the trail starts dropping in elevation and moving in and out of rocky outcroppings. It roughly parallels the Wonderland of Rocks on your right (east). You never get too deep into the rocky Wonderland, but you get a little taste!


Gnarly, Dude!

Much of the second half of the trail follows a wash.

Left or Right?? Take your pick, I guess!!

Old livestock watering trough found along Boy Scout Trail
Cousin Scott striking a hiker's pose!

From this spot on the trail, you get a sneak peek of 29 Palms beyond the hills of JTNP





This is, in my opinion, the best view you will see from BST. It's really stunning, with the rocky mountains of Joshua Tree all around you and the town of 29 Palms off in the distance. Most of the photos from this post were taken with my iPhone because I didn't want to get my DSLR out of the backpack in the light rain we had for much of the hike. From this vista point, the trail drops steeply down into a wash. It's in this area you start to think "I never want to hike this trail in the opposite direction!!"

Looks like this wash gets a lot of water from time to time.


Nearing the end of the trail, with some nice views of 29 Palms. To complete the hike, continue to follow the trail for about a mile NE to Indian Cove Road. Scott and I will hike straight ahead, down into the wash, and follow it N/NW right to our front door. Now that's a great hike!


Linking with Skywatch Friday.
Click on the link to check out great skies from around the world.
Thanks for stopping by!!

39 comments:

  1. Enjoyed the visual hike with you guys ~ Fun time and fantastic photos of beautiful vista ~What a sky!

    Happy Day to you,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  2. Beautiful photos. It's so nice to create some beautiful memories with your cousin.

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  3. Perfect sky for adding drama--- Incredible results with your phone!

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  4. That looks like a wonderful hike.

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  5. Wonderful landscapes and scenes - I always enjoy going on a hike with you.

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  6. I was wondering what you'd do if you started the hike a distance and ended at your house. You'd definitely have to get dropped off.

    The other question I was going to ask was about rain, as those clouds in the earlier shots looked ominous.

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  7. Wow, another intrepid adventure. You have a whole family of explorers. I love your photos of the desert, they are spectacular.

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  9. Wow - fabulous shots and what a great hike!

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  10. Great pictures from an excellent hike. It's nice to learn that you have clouds and even rain from time to time - though not often to judge from the scenery! I love to find those "informative" signs with arrows pointing in both directions - there's one on the SW Coast path here which tells you in essence that the coast path continues in either direction following the coast, you should on no account climb the barbed wire fence on one side or jump into the sea on the other!

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  11. Indeed it was an enjoyable day and the rocks and trees are amazing...what an environment!
    Have a great weekend!

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  12. Stunning photos of the park, thought you were using your iPhone from the photos. Can't go wrong with a hike that finishes at your back door

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  13. What a difference in colors it make when the sun doesn't shine and the sky isn't blue. But magical it stays.

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  14. Fantastic landscapes and I like some of those moody clouds.

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  15. I love trailing behind you in these hikes. Thanks for letting me tag. Ah. I had a nice trip to the Smokies...but I miss mountains.

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  16. Looks like a great hike! 7.5 miles there, eat lunch, 7.5 miles back. It also looks like a cool day, perfect for a hike. And you look well equipped!

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  17. not the usual blue sky, but interesting nevertheless.

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  18. You do the work; I get the enjoyment. Is that fair? Probably not but thank you for doing the work. Gorgeous, as always!

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  19. Quite the hike and quite the hikers. The rocks totally amaze me. So many twist and turns in them and some so smooth looking. It is truly amazing what the landscape has gone through. I like the old watering trough.
    My daughter lives in Ritzville Wa. which is in the Channeled Scablands of Washington. Nothing at all like the desert but the rock outcroppings are marvelous.
    Bob and I like hiking and exploring also.
    MB

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  20. That was a great hike and your photos are striking, the cloudy sky helped there. The scenery is gobsmacking too. How lucky to live so close but I'm guessing it gets hot there.

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  21. Wow ! what a wild landscape love it !

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  22. Breathtaking scenes from your hike with your cousin!

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  23. Wow a great Hikingtour in a wonderful landscape.
    Greetings
    Kirsi

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  24. Amazing landscape and beautiful photos as always. Thanks for taking us along on your adventurous hike.

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  25. Stunning landscape shots as always, looks amazing whatever the weather. Isn't it good when you can share your love of hiking with a friend or like cousin Scott, a relative. My daughter and husband would loooove hiking here ✨

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  26. Your posts are psychedelic expanding my mind!

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  27. Those clouds were very photogenic. So many beautiful sights along the way. At first glance I thought the sign said 75 miles instead of 7.5 and thought you were off on a REALLY big adventure!

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  28. one of those trees is growing strangely over but it's still very cool.

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  29. That's really tough to live where you have a trail like that in your backyard (or front maybe);))) .... anyway, just wow! I knew you were right on the edge of JT, but not that close. Wonderful -- cool that you could see as far as you could on a grey-ish day. And such a treat to hike through that scenery with a like-minded relative.

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  30. More than once I have looked at your photos and thought "Is this really a place on this planet?" Could be Mars, the way the rocks and the sky and the flora come together to look so different from anything that I have ever seen!!! I actually appreciated having Scott in some of your pictures for perspective - like the size of that Joshua Tree over his head!!!

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  31. The grey cloudy sky cast such beautiful shadows and colors in your photos! What a wonderful and scenic hike!

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  33. It seems it was fun to hike with cousin Scott :-) wonderful skies.

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