TLDR: site 29 is the best in my opinion. there's cool wildlife if you look for it. flush toilets…read moreand running water. potable water free and many faucets around campground. hiking trails within walking distance. black rock campground was a great in-between for glamping and regular camping. I think the most defining features of this campsite are the flush toilets and running water in the bathrooms. however there are no showers. there is potable water faucets scattered about the campground. there are many sites to choose from but after walking around the campground, the best ones are furthest from the entrance (like where we stayed at site 29) highly recommending site 29!!!! very secluded and not crowded next to your neigboring sites. close to the bathroom with no smell. the campground has a nature center open 8am-4pm on the weekends and has a Ranger present as well as other staff. there are hiking trails about 0.75 miles from the campground at High View Trailhead (walkable or can drive there since there's a parking lot at trailhead)

+ Decentely remote venue to go camping with folks. + Nice…read morethat there's a visitor center in the center of the campground for our convenience. . The camp sites are close together, so you can see and hear your neighbors. Not so secluded. If you want more privacy, maybe you'll prefer a different campground. Deserts, man. So dry and often warm.

Hiked Barker Dam Trail in January 2026 and it ended up being one of my favorite spots in Joshua…read moreTree National Park. The dam was filled with water (which apparently isn't always the case), and I had most of the trail completely to myself. Peaceful, scenic, and classic Joshua Tree views the entire way. Easy hike, big payoff, and felt like discovering a hidden gem. Loved it.

Fun hike in Joshua Tree, the payoff is water in a desert. The dam was first built as a water…read morereservoir in 1900 and still works. When we went the lake toward the center of the hike was much more impressive than the dam itself. Along the path there are little signs that explain some of the sights you see on the way. It's an easy 1.1 mile hike out and back and you see many highlights of the Mojave desert including plant life, boulders, and lush greenery and birds near the water. It starts off flat but soon you'll be climbing through rocks and curving through exciting changes in the landscape. Some unique stops along the way are: -the lake/oasis, beautiful reflections in the water if you come at the right time. -theres a stone spiral at the dam that's not explained on the sign, if anyone knows what it is let me know, you can scramble to the left of the mountain here and make your way all the way to the spiral. -there is ancient cave art and petroglyphs that are much easier to see than some others ive been to, unfortunately someone in the past tried to make them easier to see by tracing paint on some of them.

Ramona & Conan made our experience unforgettable. The walk/hike portion was very educational about…read morethe land we were on, its history, etc. The sound bath was in a special cave with immense energy. It opened our minds & hearts in an unexplainable way. A true off the grid experience. This is not for everyone but if you feel called, do it! A very worthwhile experience. The land is precious and full of wonderful energy.

I recently went here to get away from everything, it turned out to be just what i needed. The…read moregrounds here are beautiful, they gave us a tour and really explained in detail the history of the place from the petroglyphs, to the plants, and wildlife. The sound bath with Ramona was other worldly, it was held in a Cave made from an ancient rock structure, it was very powerful. It feel like a prehistoric wonderland. I was able to camp in my truck tent, but there are super cool tents and structures you can rent. I highly recommend to going here to detach from the normal fast paced life, its an enchanting experience.

After speaking to Yolanda who was very accommodating not to listen, couldn't handle what was being…read moresaid so she decides to hang up the phone on me. Very Professional; Town of Yucca Valley. There wasn't any verbal words or anything. She does what she wants with an attitude. I'm sure I'm not the first one to call her out. Get some people with some kind of compassion without running a nazi camp over there. Show kindness not negativity. Do BETTER PLEASE!!

A place to spend the night after visiting Joshua Tree National Park. Surviving the heat of the day…read moreis rewarded by the wondrous sunset. Golden sun setting turns into pastel then fiery pinks. We chose Meditteranean for dinner then drove up and down the road to see what was still open around 8 p.m. Much of the stores were closed for the day but our friendly standbys, Arbys, McDonalds & Starbucks remained open for our evening cold coffee beverages, etc. Our daughter found an awesome place for the night with 3 beds furnished rustic cool. The 2 ac units and 2 fans were a nice touch just up the hill from the town on a remote sandy road. Stay overnite like us in hopes of seeing a road runner or coyote. So far jack rabbits were seen shortly after we arrived.

Have a sturdy automobile as it's about a mile of unpaved bumpy gravel road. Leave the Corvette at…read morehome. There is unmarked parking at the entrance. I did not notice a restroom or water fountain. There was a bunch of stone sheltered picnic tables. Majority of this short trek was on gravel and sand walkways. Lots of beautiful views, dried up waterways , greenery and geology. Comfortable and quiet walk.

This was a new hiking trail for me. It was so close to my condo in Desert Hot Springs and a great…read moreplace to explore. The entrance is right off of route 62 so keep your eyes opened or you will pass it. It helps to put the address in your gps. Follow the dirt road about a mile or so. (Word of advice: do not wash your car before you go here. Your car will be coated in dust:)! This dirt road takes you to a public lot by the big wooden gate. We were told that if you call 24 hours ahead of when you want to go there, you can get access to drive in past the gate. I believe they also have overnight camping available. We were fine with the hike into the park. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon and the river to our left was flowing from recent rains. We passed several people on the trails. Some had dogs with them. Everyone was friendly and in good spirits. We passed a few stone huts and a fountain that was not working along the way. Couldn't help ourselves and took some fun pics. You can have a picnic here. The huts had no roofs but they did have wooden picnic tables inside. After a few minutes we continued our way towards the log cabin and did some exploring inside before turning around and heading back to the car. This hike was easy and a great cardio workout for the day. There were several trails to take. I am looking forward to checking out a different one the next time I go.

It was a very chilly & windy day in Desert Hot Springs yesterday but we decided to tackle this…read moretrail anyway. We parked on the street and followed the markings to the entrance. It started out pretty simple and not very challenging. However, the higher up we climbed the more I got blown around...and not in a "good way" if ya know what I mean! Lol. The trail heading down was very steep, sandy & rocky with not much traction. We had to go down side ways to avoid slipping on our buttocks. Once we were 1/2 way down it was less intense and we weren't concerned about slipping. The views were incredible! Lots of desert plants were flowering. From start to finish it was less than a mile. Plenty of resting spots. I would like to come back when it's not so darn windy...but lately it's always windy in DHS. Oy!

What a delightful hike! Incredible twilight views with the sky turning into a thousand different…read morecolors. Will never got this evening.

Just took a Joshua Tree morning tour with Wendy. She was excellent and patient with my family…read more Since we got into the park a little after 8am, we were constantly ahead of the crowds. Overall we really enjoyed our experience and would highly recommend using them. And we paid about $100 per person for a private morning tour. That's pretty good value IMO! The selection of different activities was very low but that was because we booked the busiest time of the season, and only about 3 weeks ahead of time. Booking process was very smooth. The only issue I had was they were unresponsive to any type of communication beforehand. After I booked online, I wrote them and email asking for confirmation, as well as called them and left a voicemail. I received no reply. I almost thought I might have been scammed! Thankfully that wasn't that case.

Great day hiking experience! Our guide was knowledgeable about the park itself and the plants,…read moreanimals, and geology. He also was flexible to adapt to our group's need to change plans when we realized not everyone was interested in rock scrambling.

This was one of those last minute / random / wasn't planned kind of hikes. Which ended up being…read moredefinitely worth it. Very minimal gain and elevation, however wear sturdy shoes due to the soft uneven sand. Very interesting history I won't spoil it for everyone but it's not just about a mine.. You can get up close and personal with the mine, please be respectful and do not enter the mine although it is very clear you can see that some people have disregarded the signage entering the mine and damaging pieces of it as well. As with any mine, it is unsafe to enter. Parking is of course on all BLM land free. When I went it was during the week and it was not overly crowded at all I think I may have seen a total of four people. Very peaceful and even during the summer it wasn't outrageously hot as SoCal can be. Definitely worth the Segway from heading to death valley.

Relatively flat, wide path to and from the parking area. This is not one of those challenging…read morehikes. However, you are rewarded with some beautiful groves of Joshua Trees, very slight diversions to check out Wonderland (Ohlson) Ranch ruins and an vintage abandoned vehicle near the beginning of your walk. Later on, of course, is the Wall Street Stamp Mill, which is an abandoned gold stamp mill. While this has been fenced off, it's very interesting. And of course, there's more abandoned stuff nearby, including a couple of cars. Bring lots of water, a hat, and sunscreen. You're in the desert. Even if it's not hot, you're in the desert.

My family and I came to Joshua Tree for the first time and since we were unfamiliar with the area,…read moreI hired Ethan from Joshua Tree Adventures to be our guide inside the Joshua Tree National Park. It was the best decision I made!! The first day he took us on an amazing 4-hour hike inside the park, he showed us all of the extraordinary sites and also educated us about the very complex geological history of the park. On the 2nd day, he took us mountain climbing, which was the highlight of our trip!! Ethan's kind, encouraging and wise nature helped my son and I accomplish mountain climbing feats we thought were impossible! I HIGHLY recommend Ethan's services for anyone visiting Joshua Tree! The guided tours we took with him really made our trip adventurous, fun, educational and very memorable! Ethan has been guiding for many years and has a real passion for what he does! He's one of the BEST guides I have worked with!

I can't recommend Joshua Tree Adventures highly enough. My friend and I did a day of guided hiking…read morewith Ethan in Wonderland of Rocks. He took us to beautiful parts of the park that we would never have found on our own. We are in our late sixties and hike regularly. Ethan designed a route that was a good match for our abilities; some elevation gain, walking up and over granite faces and between boulders. He was there to provide help if we needed but was also willing to let us sort out our footing on our own. He regularly checked in to see how we were feeling about the route. As we walked, he gave us a lot of information about the geology, plants and history of the park and answered all of our questions. I wI'll definitely book another adventure with him on my next visit to the park.