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Joshua Tree/SoCal Trip – Part I – Getting there, settling in

2009-06-0827 CommentsBirding, Nature, Photography, Travel, Wildflowers

Friday, April 24 2009:

We left home early, encountering no traffic at all getting out of the bay area, and drove the long’ish slog down I-5 to Bakersfield.  Fortunately the drive to this part of California is “only” a couple hundred miles on mind-numbing I-5, rather than the full many-hours-long epic to get to LA, and after a quick lunch at Foster’s Freeze in Bakersfield, the drive was interesting enough as we drove through Tehachapi, and through the desert on Hwy 58 past Mojave and through Boron.  We stopped to browse a funky antique shop at Kramer Junction, then continued to Barstow and from there headed south on 2-lane Hwy 247.

Hwy 247 went through some pretty high desert, and some very depressed-looking communities, especially Lucerne Valley, and ended at Twentynine Palms Hwy AKA Hwy 62, in Yucca Valley, a charmless and endless strip mall.   We noted a couple of grocery stores for future reference, and continued east to the town of Joshua Tree, which was considerably more enticing than Yucca Valley (a good thing, as we were staying there!).  A few miles up the road to Joshua Tree National Park brought us to our rental house, a short 500 miles and 9 hours drive from home.

Beavertail Cactus by you.

Beavertail Cactus (Opuntia basilaris)

We were quite impressed with our rental, which had several private acres of sparse Joshua Tree woodland, a hot tub, and more than plenty of space for the two of us (another couple had planned on joining us for part of this trip, but had to cancel).

House Finch by you.

House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus)

House Finches mobbed the bird feeder in the back yard, and some quail ate the seeds that had fallen to the ground.  Hmm, those quail don’t look quite right for California Quail….  A quick look at my field guide showed the reason – they were Gambel’s Quail (LIFER!), a similiar, but mostly not-overlapping-range quail species.

Our Rental House by you.

Our rental in Joshua Tree Highlands – sweet!

We unpacked and walked around the property, happy to find that there were many blooming cactii and wildflowers – this boded well, as I had assumed that we would be too late to see much in the way of desert flowers.

Engelmann Hedgehog by you.

Englemann Hedgehog (Echinocereus engelmannii)

We had Beavertail Cactus, Englemann Hedgehog, Joshua Trees, Mojave Yucca, and several types of Cholla all within just a few hudred feet of the house.

Natural Desert Garden by you.

Joshua Trees (Yucca breviflora) at sunset

Numerous flowers were blooming as well, but most would have to wait to be identified, as I am/was mostly unfamiliar with desert flora & fauna.

Mojave Aster by you.

Mojave Aster (Xylorhiza tortifolia)

One easy ID, however, was the Mojave Aster, with its pretty purple flowers and giveaway aster shape.  Back at the feeder, a new bird had joined the House Finches, a Black-throated Sparrow (LIFER!).  Sweet, two life birds, and we hadn’t even left our rental yet!

After relaxing for a bit we drove back to Yucca Valley, stocked up on groceries, made a simple dinner, and went to bed after a lovely relaxing hot tub.

Location:     Villa Rocosa (JT Highlands House)
Observation date:     4/24/09
Number of species:     6

* Gambel's Quail - Callipepla gambelii     3
Red-tailed Hawk - Buteo jamaicensis     1
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     5
Common Raven - Corvus corax     2
* Black-throated Sparrow - Amphispiza bilineata     2
House Finch - Carpodacus mexicanus     1

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

Saturday, April 25 2009:

Natural Desert Garden by you.

Sunrise

I woke with the sun and enjoyed watching its rays spread out over the mountains and valley.  A small yellowish bird briefly perched on a backyard chair just long enough for me to identify it as a Verdin (LIFER!).

Bunny by you.

Desert Cottontail

A pair of Desert Cottontails frolicked about, jumping around and over each other.  I assume it was frolicking anyways – for all I know it could have been a bunny deathmatch!

Natural Desert Garden by you.

Desert backyard

I walked around our “yard,” enjoying the changing light.  The air was full of calling Mourning Doves and Gambel’s Quail, and despite scattered houses around us, all else was quiet.

Beavertail Cactus by you.

Beavertail Cactus (Opuntia basilaris)

The cactus diversity was pretty impressive for a little patch of land!  Brilliant Beavertail blooms popped magenta in the early morning light, while other cactii were a bit more subtle.

Diamond Cholla by you.

Diamond Cholla (Opuntia ramosissima)

The backyard quail were skittish, and avoided my attempts to photograph them, but I did catch a House Finch and Black-throated Sparrow at the feeder:

House Finch & Black-throated Sparrow by you.

House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) & Black-throated Sparrow (Amphispiza bilineata)

Both birds were voracious, fighting among themselves.  House Finches outnumbered the Black-throated Sparrows by about 3:1, and there was much tussling over feeder space.

Acton Encelia by you.

Acton Encelia (Encelia actoni)

I roused Sarah, and after a bagel breakfast, we headed out for the morning’s hike.

To be continued….

Location:     Villa Rocosa (JT Highlands House)
Observation date:     4/25/09
Number of species:     6

Gambel's Quail - Callipepla gambelii     3
Mourning Dove - Zenaida macroura     4
Common Raven - Corvus corax     2
* Verdin - Auriparus flaviceps     1
Black-throated Sparrow - Amphispiza bilineata     3
House Finch - Carpodacus mexicanus     2
  • Part I – Getting there, settling in <– You are here!
  • Part II – Twentynine Palms Oasis
  • Part III – Oasis of Mara, Noah Purifoy, Key’s View, Cap Rock
  • Part IV – Lost Horse Mine
  • Part V – Cholla Cactus Garden, Geology Tour Road
  • Part VI – Split Rock, Hidden Valley
  • Part VII – Barker Dam, Ocotillo Patch
  • Part VIII – Mastodon Peak, Cholla Cactus Garden revisited
  • Part IX – Big Morongo Canyon, AKA Birding Paradise
  • Part X – Tahquitz Canyon
  • Part XI – Living Desert, LA, and home
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27 Comments
  1. Reply
    2009-06-08 at 19:30
    scienceguy288

    Beautiful shots as always. Now I must warn you: since you are in JT, I will be a bit envious. As a climber, JT is a kind of Mecca of sorts.

    • Reply
      2009-06-09 at 10:00
      Adam R. Paul

      Thanks! We did see quite a few climbers there. There are even trail markers pointing out notable climbing routes & their difficulty (eg, Rubicon: 5.12c)

  2. Reply
    2009-06-08 at 19:59
    montucky

    That’s a pretty part of the desert. It was nice that there were still cactus in bloom! I always liked the Joshua trees.

    • Reply
      2009-06-09 at 10:01
      Adam R. Paul

      Walking among Joshua Trees makes me feel like I’m in a Dr. Seuss story – I expect a Lorax or Who to pop out around every corner 🙂

  3. Reply
    2009-06-09 at 19:41
    Red

    I’m glad you got up early to see that morning light and share it with us. The desert is magical! And Joshua Tree even more so. I love them when they flower.

    I’m pretty sure I’ll be seeing some Gambel’s Quail next week visiting Arizona. I’d seen them before there and have a very lousy picture of one on top of a Century Plant. I hope to catch some RoadRunners. I’ve seen glimpses of them, but not much more than that.

    • Reply
      2009-06-09 at 22:14
      Adam R. Paul

      Somehow I found myself awake at sunrise pretty much every day we were in Joshua Tree – very beautiful, and a time of day I am not accustomed to seeing!

      We briefly saw one Roadrunner at a desert zoo near Palm Springs (I believe it was a wild one as it wasn’t in an aviary), but it was a poor view, and I didn’t get a photo. We more than made up for that with the many, many other great birds we saw – stay tuned 🙂

  4. Reply
    2009-06-11 at 08:23
    Mary Carlson

    Adam, what you have shared with us so far has been well worth the wait. So you are saying that it’s possible that late April is usually too late in the season to see the desert in bloom? Albeit, it did seem to be a later spring this year, didn’t it? I’m so glad you were there at the “right” time. Funny how geography and elevation can play an important part when it comes to cacti, etc, blooming in the desert. I remember when we lived in Albuquerque that the cacti and such didn’t really bloom until mid to late May.

    • Reply
      2009-06-15 at 08:25
      Adam R. Paul

      AFAIK, and I am by no means well-versed in desert flora, the wildflower bloom is best in Feb/Mar depending on the location & the year, and the cactus bloom is much later.

  5. Reply
    2009-06-12 at 10:52
    Thomas

    The details in those cacti is marvelous

    • Reply
      2009-06-15 at 08:25
      Adam R. Paul

      Thanks, Thomas!

  6. Reply
    2009-06-14 at 04:29
    Donald Kinney

    Well, staying in a rental like that must beat the holy-heck out of camping…

    • Reply
      2009-06-15 at 08:26
      Adam R. Paul

      I love camping (in fact, I just got back from 5 days camping north of Tahoe), but yes, this rental was super-nice!

  7. Reply
    2009-06-15 at 02:11
    Jennifer Schlick

    Gosh, you make the desert seem beautiful… I lived in Phoenix for a couple of years, but I guess I was too young and foolish to notice the beauty. All I noticed was the dryness and the heat… Happy to be back in Lush, Wet Western New York… But your post makes a visit to the southwest seem appealing! Beautiful photos! (Love the black-throated sparrow! never saw one of those before!)

    • Reply
      2009-06-15 at 08:29
      Adam R. Paul

      The desert is beautiful! Phoenix, however, is another story 😉

      I’ve always wanted to do a road trip loop through the southwest, but it’s such a huge area with so much to see, I’ve never had a block of time long enough.

      The Mojave desert, where we were on this trip, is very, very different from the Sonora desert in Arizona.

  8. Reply
    2009-06-17 at 08:17
    Bernie Kasper

    Wonderful images Adam, I would love to travel there or Death Valley just once before I die, they are so beautiful !!

    • Reply
      2009-06-17 at 12:28
      Adam R. Paul

      If you had time you could do both – they’re only a couple of hours apart. Both are simply stunning places. Death Valley is an austere beauty, JT is a little more intimate.

  9. Pingback: Joshua Tree/SoCal Trip – Part II – Twentynine Palms Oasis « Adam Paul
  10. Reply
    2009-06-26 at 11:28
    ankush

    beautiful shots, i love the birds

    • Reply
      2009-06-26 at 12:26
      Adam R. Paul

      Thanks – the birdwatching there was excellent, and quite different from home

  11. Reply
    2009-09-14 at 19:19
    sara

    wow ur pics r so kool i showed some of em 2 my teacher and she said ur great she said that i could b as gud as u if i keep tryin. u r now my idiol 4 the year which with me is a very big thing cause i aint got many ppl 2 look up 2. ur pics r AWSOME!!!! oh and can i ask wat is avid?

    • Reply
      2009-09-18 at 15:26
      Adam R. Paul

      Thanks, Sara!

  12. Reply
    2010-01-18 at 11:11
    Aaron

    Hey Adam. I was wondering if you knew enough about Joshua Tree to help me with planning a 3 day backpacking trip. Whats the coolest part of the park to backpack? I was thinking about doing a loop through Turkey Flats in the Pinto Basin and seeing Pinto Mountain. Is there anything that would beat that?

    • Reply
      2010-01-27 at 17:40
      Adam R. Paul

      Hi Aaron, sorry for the belated reply. I’m afraid I am not familiar with Joshua Tree beyond what I’ve posted here, all of which are short dayhikes. What you describe sounds good in that it’s nowhere near the usual tourist routes 🙂

  13. Reply
    2010-01-26 at 15:58
    hailey

    love the picture of the desert cottontail because im doing an oral report about it

    • Reply
      2010-01-27 at 17:39
      Adam R. Paul

      Thanks, Hailey!

  14. Reply
    2010-10-04 at 19:57
    Rogue Woman

    WordPress drives me nuts trying to navigate. I wanted to see more of your birding photos in the blog and finally gave up and just went straight to your photography site. I wish wordpress had page turners, a search box and labels, like blogger has, so I could find the info I wanted 🙁

    • Reply
      2010-10-17 at 22:51
      Adam R. Paul

      There is a search box on my sidebar, as well as the category cloud which you should be able to use to navigate that way. My photo site is woefully out of date – if its bird photos you want to see, check my Flickr site

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