North of Lost Palms Oasis

 This is a hike I underestimated, and that can be a dangerous thing to do. On Google Earth, the area looked interesting, with some huge rock formations that called to me. I carefully mapped out my route and transferred it to my phone. I figured 4-5 hours should be plenty of time to explore the area, which turned out to be a significant underestimate. Join me as I explore the challenging terrain north of the Lost Palm Oasis trail.

I started at Cottonwood Spring where I picked up the Lost Palms Oasis trailhead. The oasis here is full of palms and cottonwoods. A very pretty oasis in the desert, and one of only a handful in the entire park!

 

Not surprisingly, Native Americans were here first. This mortar is at the beginning of the trail and is one of the deepest I've seen in the park. They say the deeper the mortar, the more it was used and the older it is.

 

Following the Lost Palms Oasis trail made for easy hiking at the start. The low elevation here means no Joshua trees, but the ocotillo cactus are an added bonus!

 

I veered off trail a few times to check out rock formations. This looks like the remains of a fire ring.

Giant cracks, as if something hatched out of this rock. Yucca Man, perhaps??!!

 

Once I left the trail and started exploring the rocks to the north, this is the type of terrain I was up against. Beautiful but challenging, and I woud often hit dead ends and have to double back. It made for slow going.
 

Can you spot that tiny little piece of the Salton Sea at the top of the photo? I was surprised to be able to see it from here. It's about 20-25 miles away.
 

 

 

Big nose!

 

Tiki head in profile!

 

So many interesting rocks to explore!

 

 

B&W version. Interesting textures and shadows.

 

Another Salton Sea view.

 

 

I did this hike back in December, and I took this photo at 4:12PM, with the sun starting to set behind the high boulders. If memory serves, sunset was about 4:45PM. To get to the places I had marked on my route would take at least another hour, probably longer. I vividly recall the feeling of urgency to leave. Head back now. I would be very lucky to make it back to the trail before sunset, and I did NOT want to be hiking back in these steep, rocky hills in the dark!

 

I was worried I wouldn't have time to get back to the trail before dark if I followed my route back the way I came. I needed a straight line "short cut" back to the trail. The problem is, with these huge rock formations and steep-sided washes, a straight line is impossible to follow. A "short cut" also increases the risk of getting turned around or lost. I decided to take a modified straight line approach and just do the best I could.

Hmm... Straight line through here? Nope, one of many detours.

 

What a huge sigh of relief when I finally stumbled upon the trail! Elation! This must be why people like to push and challenge themselves... for this feeling you get when you successfully finish the challenge. It was after sunset, but just enough ambient light to make my way. At this point, I stopped, drank some water, and put my headlamp on for the remaining couple of miles (on trail) I needed to hike to get back to the car.

 

Back where I started... Cottonwood Wash, with the big Cottonwood tree in the wash! 8.5 miles, but it felt like at least twice that distance. With a surprising amount of elevation gain (820'). Next time, I'll be careful not to underestimate the hike!

 

Thanks for stopping by and joining me on this adventure!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.