Joshua Tree National Park – Ryan Campground
February 13th – 15th, 2023 (2 nights)
Joshua Tree National Park is a fantastic place in the high desert to visit in the winter, spring, and fall (too hot in the summer). The Joshua trees (not really trees but succulents), unusual rock formations, hiking, rock climbing and dark night skies are the main draws. The best reason for staying overnight in the park is because once the sun sets, the daytime crowds go, leaving quiet peacefulness. And, the stars are so bright here; it’s the perfect place for stargazing (away from all the city lights). It’s also not too far a drive for us from San Diego, making it a fantastic mid-week break for rest and solitude. We chose to visit Ryan Campground (one of many campgrounds inside the park) because it is small and away from the busier tourist areas. We purchased an annual park pass (America The Beautiful Pass, $80) when we visited Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in September, so we avoided the $30 entrance fee.
Located at an elevation of around 4,400 ft., Ryan Campground has only 31 campsites @$20/night (reservation only) and is centrally located within the national park. There are also 4 equestrian sites ($15/night) and 3 bicycle sites ($5/night, first come first served). There is no running water at the campground and only pit toilets. There is no cellphone reception here, so if you want to be connected bring your Starlink (or be prepared to drive about 10 minutes back toward the entrance where the hilltop overlooks the valley below). There are some nice hikes from within the campground and exhibits within a close drive. On our first day, after setting up our Scamp 13’ in campsite #5 (a nice one) and having lunch, we hiked from the campground to Ryan Ranch and then onto Lost Horse Well. It’s a short hike (only .3 miles) to the decaying adobe walls of the ranch house and bunk house (circa 1896). Lost Horse Well is just a little farther. We also walked part of the Geology Tour Rd. trail from the campground (6.6 miles). Although we didn’t see any Bighorn Sheep (which are known to be in the area, we did see a number of strikingly beautiful bluebirds (bright sky blue color) called Mountain Bluebirds. After hiking, we drove to Keys View — a short drive up to the top of a crest of the Little San Bernardino Mountains. There are benches at the top and panoramic views of the Coachella Valley below– including the Salton Sea, Santa Rosa Mountains, 10,800 peak of San Jacinto Peak (behind Palm Springs), and the snow-covered peak of 11,500 San Gorgonio Mountain. The San Andreas Fault can be seen below along the eastern part of the Coachella Valley with its jagged slabs of rock and other geological anomalies.
The wind started kicking up strongly on our first night with 20 to 30 mph winds with gusts up to 60 mph. We had received a Severe Weather Advisory email from recreation.gov when driving into the park without further details (and we didn’t have internet access to research what was coming our way once we arrived at the campground). Tent campers were having a rough time with their tents sometimes folding up in the wind; many of these campers slept in their cars for shelter. One man, who is travelling the country by bike, told me he was almost swept off his feet when trying to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Since campgrounds here have no water, we arrived with our Scamp 13’s fresh tank full (giving us some extra ballast). Our rear stabilizers were down which also helped weather the gusts. We were unhitched, but the Scamp handled the strong wind well (with only occasional shaking, despite the wind hitting the Scamp directly on its side – the Scamp’s aerodynamic shape likely helped). The wind was so loud that, despite wearing earplugs and playing white noise, it was difficult to sleep (it sounded like we were on a boat in a fierce storm at sea). Meanwhile, temperatures dropped into the 20’s and we cranked up our Scamp’s furnace to stay toasty.
The wind continued to blow hard the next day. It was sunny, but cool and windy. We bundled up in our down jackets with wind breakers over them. We drove to the visitor’s center (about 30 minutes) to see their exhibits and souvenirs and also spent some time on our phones (since we had cellphone reception here). On the way back to Ryan Campground, we stopped at numerous outdoor exhibits and trails which included Cap Rock & Intersection Rock (including .3 mile nature loop) and Creosote Trail. We also stopped at some popular rock climbing spots. Some of the names of these rocks are interesting: Hemingway Buttress, Banana Cracks, Heart of Darkness, Target Rock, The Oyster Bar, Split Personality Rock, Agent Orange, East Wall Hall of Horrors, Exorcist, Diamond Dogs, and Nurn’s Romp. We tried to visually connect the names of the rocks with the rock shapes, but they didn’t really match. We guess the rock names are more aligned with the climbing experiences rather than the rocks’ appearances. The most epic experience though, was walking along desert trails filled with Joshua trees (sights that cannot be matched anywhere else). The trees, actually a type of Yucca, were, according to legend, named by Mormon immigrants crossing through the desert in the 1850s. They saw the gnarled outstretched limbs of the trees as reaching their hands up to the sky in prayer (and/or pointing toward the Promised Land) and, so, named them after the biblical figure Joshua.
The wind calmed a bit in the evening of our last night, only to pave the way for an unexpected snowstorm! Click here for a short video of the snowstorm at our campsite. Yes, it was actually snowing! We sure were glad to have two filled propane tanks on board (although we only used a small fraction of one) so we could run our heater all night. We were very comfortable inside the warm cozy interior of the Scamp (watching movies and playing Sequence and Backgammon games). Looking out the Scamp’s panoramic windows watching the snow blanket the desert floor was a mesmerizing site. Equally as captivating, was watching the tent campers scrambling to their cars for supplies during the blizzard. It was difficult to imagine how they were able to bundle up enough in the cold to sleep in their tents (most likely didn’t have propane heaters and we witnessed some sleeping in their cars). We heard some scary stories the following morning from tent campers who battled extreme cold during the night (temps in the teens). People also exchanged hot food and hot drinks the morning after the snowstorm.
Our last morning at Ryan Campground was calm with blue skies (temperatures in the 20’s). We had a chance to take a nice early morning hike (Keys View Rd trail) from the campground (around a two mile round trip flat desert walk) before heading home. Because we plan to come back, we made note of a number of ranger programs which look interesting–including, Keys Ranch Tour ($10 for adults, reservations the day before), All About Joshua Trees, and the Evening Program. Although we experienced a wild weather ride on this trip, it was really exciting and satisfying. It was great to see how our Scamp 13’ pushed through the challenges with flying colors. And, these experiences will no doubt elevate our game for future trips. Speaking of future trips, our next planned trip is back here next month at Jumbo Rocks Campground! Stay tuned!
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