Joshua Tree National Park

About

Joshua Tree National Park spans nearly 800,000 acres where the Mojave and Colorado deserts converge in Southern California. The park is named for the spiky, otherworldly Joshua trees that dot the higher Mojave side, but the landscape offers far more than its namesake plants. Massive granite boulder piles create a surreal playground that has made the park famous among rock climbers, while the lower Colorado Desert side features stands of cholla cactus, fan palms in hidden oases, and wide-open bajadas stretching toward distant mountains.

Most visitors explore the park by car along the paved park road that connects the West Entrance near the town of Joshua Tree to the North Entrance in Twentynine Palms, with a southern spur leading to Cottonwood Spring. Along the way, short nature trails and pullouts offer easy access to the park's highlights. Keys View provides a panoramic overlook of the Coachella Valley, San Andreas Fault, and on clear days, the Salton Sea. The Cholla Cactus Garden trail is a flat quarter-mile loop through a dense stand of teddy bear cholla that glows golden in late afternoon light.

The park is also one of the premier dark sky destinations in the country, designated as an International Dark Sky Park. Stargazing is spectacular, especially during new moon periods, and the park hosts regular night sky programs led by rangers. Spring brings wildflower blooms that can carpet the desert floor in good rainfall years, drawing photographers and nature lovers from across the region.

Plan to bring all the water you'll need - there is no drinking water available in the park interior. Visitor centers at Twentynine Palms and Cottonwood have water, restrooms, and exhibits. The park is about a two and a half hour drive from Los Angeles, making it a popular weekend trip. Camping is available at nine campgrounds, several of which accept reservations.

Accessibility

Joshua Tree National Park has an Accessibility Coordinator on staff and provides detailed accessibility information through the National Park Service. Visitors should be aware that much of the park's terrain is rugged desert with sandy, rocky, and uneven surfaces, which presents challenges for wheelchair users.

The main park visitor center in Twentynine Palms has accessible parking with both standard and van-accessible spaces, plus EV charging stations. The visitor center building has accessible restrooms with grab bars, a lowered information desk counter for wheelchair users, and room to navigate exhibits and the bookstore in a wheelchair. Staff can assist with reaching items on higher shelves.

For trails, options for wheelchair users are limited but meaningful. The Cap Rock Nature Trail is a short, paved loop that is navigable in a wheelchair. Keys View, the park's most popular overlook, has a steep paved path to the viewpoint that wheelchair users have reported completing with assistance. The Oasis of Mara trail near the visitor center is a flat, paved path. The Bajada Nature Trail and parts of the Cholla Cactus Garden loop are relatively flat but have sandy or packed dirt surfaces that can be difficult for standard wheelchairs.

Manual and motorized wheelchairs are permitted anywhere pedestrians are allowed. Other Power Driven Mobility Devices (OPDMDs) are allowed on trails and dirt roads for people with mobility disabilities, though golf carts and ATVs are prohibited. The park allows recumbent trikes on outdoor trails and the Keys Ranch tour but not inside buildings.

Cell service is generally unavailable throughout the park. Free public Wi-Fi is available at visitor centers. Emergency phones are located at Intersection Rock parking area, Cottonwood Visitor Center, and Indian Cove Ranger Station. Note that out-of-state parking placards are not honored in California - visitors must apply for a temporary California placard through the DMV.

Contact the park's Accessibility Coordinator at [email protected] or call the visitor center for current trail conditions before your visit.

More accessible places in California

• Griffith Observatory (Los Angeles)
• Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) (Los Angeles)
• San Diego Zoo (San Diego)
• Yosemite National Park (Yosemite)
• Exploratorium (San Francisco)
• Aquarium of the Pacific (Long Beach)

Photo credits

• Joshua Tree National Park - ca-joshua-tree-national-park-us-national-park-service-1: National Park Service, Public domain (U.S. National Park Service)
• Joshua Tree National Park - ca-joshua-tree-national-park-us-national-park-service-3: National Park Service, Public domain (U.S. National Park Service)
• Joshua Tree National Park - ca-joshua-tree-national-park-us-national-park-service-4: National Park Service, Public domain (U.S. National Park Service)