Desert View Trail

Joshua Tree straddles the boundary between two very different deserts. Above about three thousand feet the land is Mojave, cooler and wetter, and this is where the Joshua trees, actually giant yuccas, raise their shaggy arms in loose forests among the boulders. Drop lower and east and the country becomes Colorado Desert, the western arm of the Sonoran, where creosote flats and gardens of cholla cactus take over.

That transition is why the park feels so varied from one drive to the next, and why an overlook trail here can show you both realms at once. The plants, the light, and even the temperature shift as you move across the boundary.

The park's signature piles of rounded, stacked boulders are monzogranite, molten rock that cooled deep underground long ago, then cracked into blocks along regular joints. Groundwater rounded those blocks below the surface, and as the land eroded away they emerged into the strange, sculptural stacks that climbers and photographers love.

Faults run through this country too, part of the restless geology of Southern California, and hidden fan-palm oases mark spots where water is forced to the surface along fault lines elsewhere in the park. From an overlook, the long straight lines of distant mountain fronts hint at that underlying architecture.

This land is the homeland of Native peoples including the Cahuilla, Serrano, and Chemehuevi, who lived across these deserts for generations, moving between water sources, harvesting pinyon and mesquite and desert plants, and leaving behind village sites, rock art, and the bedrock mortars where they ground seeds.

Later came ranchers, miners, and homesteaders chasing gold and grazing and cheap land, and the ruins of their mines and cabins are scattered through the park. The desert that can look empty from an overlook has in fact been lived in and worked for a very long time.

Desert life here is mostly quiet and nocturnal, but patient visitors spot black-tailed jackrabbits, antelope ground squirrels, lizards basking on the rocks, and, at dusk, coyotes and the occasional bobcat. Golden eagles and red-tailed hawks ride the thermals, and after a wet winter the flats can bloom with wildflowers in spring.

Summer is brutally hot and the wrong time to be out on an exposed trail, so the comfortable seasons run from autumn through spring. When the sun sets, Joshua Tree becomes one of the best places in Southern California to see stars, and an overlook like this one is a natural spot to stay for the dark.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is a place we chose through independent editorial review, never a paid placement.

The Desert View Trail is a scenic, relatively easy loop hiking trail located at the top of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, high in Mount San Jacinto State Park above Palm Springs, California. After riding the tramway up from the desert floor to the mountain station, hikers can take this trail through cool pine forest to a series of overlooks offering spectacular views down over the Coachella Valley, Palm Springs, and the desert far below. Combining the dramatic tramway ascent with a pleasant forest walk and stunning desert vistas, the Desert View Trail is a wonderful and accessible high-country hike.

The Desert View Trail is reached by riding the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway from its base near Palm Springs up to the mountain station in Mount San Jacinto State Park, over eight thousand feet high, and then following the trail from near the station. So you access the trail via the tramway rather than by driving to a trailhead. The loop is a modest distance with moderate elevation gain, making it a manageable hike for many visitors. Buying tramway tickets and checking current conditions at the top before you go helps you plan this scenic mountain hike.

Because the trail is at high elevation, the temperature is dramatically cooler than the desert below, often by thirty degrees or more, so bring warm layers even in summer, and expect possible snow in winter that may make the trail difficult. The thinner air at altitude means you should pace yourself and carry water. Wear good shoes for the forest trail. Any wilderness hiking beyond the loop may require a permit. Preparing for the cool mountain conditions, the elevation, and checking the weather at the top helps ensure an enjoyable hike on the Desert View Trail.

Late spring through fall offers the most pleasant conditions for the trail, when it is typically snow-free and the cool mountain air is a refreshing escape from the desert heat, making summer especially appealing for the cooler temperatures up high. Winter brings snow that can cover the trail and require appropriate gear, though the snowy forest is beautiful. Clear days offer the best desert views from the overlooks. For comfortable, accessible hiking with great views, aim for late spring through fall, always bringing layers for the cool elevation.

The Desert View Trail is at the top of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway in Mount San Jacinto State Park, with more hiking trails in the state park and wilderness nearby, and at the base, the city of Palm Springs with its downtown, art museum, and the Indian Canyons, plus the Coachella Valley resort towns and Joshua Tree National Park within reach. That makes the Desert View Trail a scenic high-country hike to combine with the tramway, downtown Palm Springs, and the desert attractions of the Coachella Valley on a Southern California visit.