We hit the road from Joshua Tree Lake RV Park this morning for one last hike in the national park. We rolled into the park from the northwest corner through a neighborhood in Yucca Valley, California. There’s no official park gate, but you can’t miss the campground and visitor center right at the entrance.

Black Rock Canyon

The Black Rock Canyon section of Joshua Tree National Park is less frequented by those intending merely to drive through the park. The campground primarily accommodates individuals using tents. Additionally, there is a designated area for horse trailers, complete with a small pen for the horses. During our hike, we came across a group of horseback riders taking advantage of the multi-use trail.

Hi-View Trail

We were supposed to just check out the West Side Loop Trail, but honestly, it was kind of a snooze, so we turned back to hit up the Hi-View Trail instead. We started climbing some stone steps up the mountain, which wasn’t too rough at first. Then we stumbled upon a trail intersection, so we took a moment to check out Caltopo, my go-to trail app, and saw there was a short 1/3 mile path to the mountain top. Lisa was totally in favor, so we decided to go for it!

The trail quickly turned into one of the toughest hikes we’ve done so far. It was super steep, and the surface was loose rock and soil; we had to use our hands to grip onto rocks and roots to avoid sliding down. We got about halfway up when we realized it was getting way harder (and scarier) instead of easier. So, we decided to turn back, and of course, going down was even slower than climbing up! We ended up sitting down and crab-walking our way back to more level ground. Once we safely reached the trail intersection, we took the other path and finished the trail without any issues. It was a bit humbling, but honestly, it was a fun hike and a great way to wrap up our Joshua Tree adventure.

After our hike and a quick bite, we jumped into Usain and set off for our next adventure – Palm Springs, California, here we come!