Joshua Tree National Park Self-Guided Driving Tour

Tour Details

Type
Driving
Duration
2 - 3 Hours
Audio Stories
48
Deep Dives
14

Welcome to the Joshua Tree National Park Tour

Explore the rugged, mystical beauty of Joshua Tree National Park with a self-guided driving tour. This raw desert landscape features incredible vistas, stunning rock formations, and eponymous cartoonish trees. As you drive on the Joshua Tree National Park tour and listen to stories around each bend in the road, keep an eye out for desert animals like the roadrunner, tortoise, and even bald eagle. Plus, enjoy a Bonus Tour of Palm Springs!

You can start your tour from either Joshua Tree Visitor Center, Cottonwood Visitor Center, or Oasis Visitor Center.

Starting the tour from the Joshua Tree Visitor Center

This self-guided driving tour begins at the Joshua Tree Visitor Center and follows the park road through this one-of-a-kind national park. As we leave civilization behind, we’ll hear about the Cahuilla tribe who once called this place home and get our introduction to Jim McHaney, who terrorized the townsfolk with his band of ruffians.

Then, of course, we’ll see the eponymous Joshua trees themselves. These funky plants look like something straight out of a Dr. Seuss book, but we can assure you they’re 100% real! Get the facts on why they look like they do and what the early Mormon pioneers thought they meant on this guided tour of Joshua Tree National Park.

Continue to a hiking trail that leads you to one of the park’s strangest sights: a bunch of rocks with cryptic spiritual inscriptions on them, left by an odd recluse almost 100 years ago. We’ll also fill you in on some of the wildlife you might spot while you’re in the park, from the pint-sized roadrunner to the elusive bighorn sheep.

Next, we’ll visit the ever-popular Hidden Valley Nature Trail, where the infamous McHaney Gang once kept their stolen cattle while waiting to sell them off. Then it’s on to Intersection Rock, a climbing hub that positively towers over the surrounding desert.

After that, we’ll head down into Lost Horse Valley and hear the dramatic tale of how it got its name. It’s a story involving horse theft, a risky move, and a tense encounter with the McHaney Gang. Keys Point awaits beyond this valley, the most famous vista point in the park, where visitors and locals alike flock to catch the sunset.

Up next, we’ll swing by the ominous Skull Rock and get a chance to visit some old, abandoned mines in Queen Valley. Then we’ll head to an observatory that’s perfect for stargazing and end up in the Oasis Visitor Center. Our tour concludes here, just outside Twentynine Palms.

Starting Point Address:

Joshua Tree Visitor Center

Cottonwood Visitor Center

Oasis Visitor Center

What You'll See

Joshua Tree Visitor Center
Small park visitor facility with maps, exhibits, books, souvenirs & info on guided hikes.
Quail Mounatin
Quail Mountain, at 5,816 feet, is the highest mountain in Joshua Tree National Park and the highest point in the Little San Bernardino Mountains of the very southern reach of the Mojave Desert.
Samuelsons Rock
Samuelsons Rocks Trail is a 5.3 kilometer moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Twentynine Palms, California that offers scenic views and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking and is accessible year-round.
Willow Hole
Willow Hole Trail is a 10.9 kilometer heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Joshua Tree, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round.
Lost Horse Valley
Lost Horse Valley is a valley in Joshua Tree National Park. It has been called "the centerpiece of the park" because of the quality of its stands of Joshua trees and its geological formations. It contains the Lost Horse Mine, of significant historic importance in the park.
Hidden valley nature trail and McHaney Gang Hideout
Hidden Valley is a self-guiding, one-mile loop trail that winds among massive boulders through what was believed to be a legendary cattle rustlers' hideout. It is one of the most popular and scenic hiking trails in Joshua Tree National Park. The area is also a popular rock-climbing area.
Intersection Rock
Intersection Rock lies at the crossroads of Quail Springs Road and Hidden Valley Campground. Note that the road has been re-routed to the south side of the formation, which has led to some confusion with first-time visitors trying to mesh guidebook descriptions to locate the routes.
Lost Horse Mountain and Gold theif
Lost Horse Mine is a historic gold and silver mine in the Lost Horse Valley of Joshua Tree National Park. Between 1894 and 1931, it produced 10,000 ounces of gold and 16,000 ounces of silver. It was first developed by Johnny Lang, then by J.D. Ryan
Right at Cap Rock
Cap Rock and Gram Parsons Nature Trail is a 1.1 kilometer moderately trafficked loop trail located near Twentynine Palms, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is good for all skill levels. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from March until November.
Queen Mountain
Queen Mountain is a 10.0 kilometer moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Twentynine Palms, California that features a river and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking and nature trips and is best used from October until May.
ALT : Desert Queen Mine
The Desert Queen Mine in the Colorado Desert was one of the more long-lived gold mines of Southern California's high desert region. The abandoned mine is located in Riverside County, California within the boundaries of the Joshua Tree National Park and is included on the National Register of Historic Places.
Skull Rock
Skull-shaped desert granite rock formation with 2 depressions like eye sockets created by erosion.
Cushion Foxtail Cactus & Split Rock Loop Trail
Split Rock Loop Trail is a 3.1 kilometer heavily trafficked loop trail located near Twentynine Palms, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is good for all skill levels. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round.
ALT : Sky's The limit observatory and nature center
Sky's The Limit Observatory & Nature Center campus is open for individuals and families to walk the Nature and Wilderness Trails, explore the Orrery, and experience the Meditation Garden.
ALT : Oasis visitor center
The Oasis Visitor Center is one of the most historically significant visitor centers representing Joshua Tree National Park. Featuring the beautiful Oasis of Mara, the visitor center was established in 1950 when the park was a still a National Monument. Along the nature trail and surrounding the unique visitor center building, visitors can find many of the plants native to the area as well as plants established by the Serrano tribes. The park store is also the perfect place for a special keepsake.
Arch Rock Nature Trail
Arch Rock Nature Trail is a 1.9 kilometer heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Twentynine Palms, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is good for all skill levels. The trail is primarily used for hiking and walking and is accessible year-round.
Ocotillo Patch
A 30-minute drive from Cottonwood Campground is the Ocotillo Patch, a roadside stand of cacti that put on a dramatic floral display after even a light rainstorm. The ocotillo, a Colorado Desert plant, can grow to over 15 feet tall, and its bright orange-red tubular flowers appear each spring. The Ocotillo Patch is on Pinto Basin Road
Mastodon Peak
Mastodon Peak Loop Trail is a 4.2 kilometer heavily trafficked loop trail located near Mecca, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is good for all skill levels. The trail is primarily used for hiking, camping, nature trips, and bird watching and is best used from April until October.
Cottonwood Spring
Cottonwood Spring Nature Trail is a 2.4 kilometer moderately trafficked loop trail located near Mecca, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is good for all skill levels. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from March until October.
Cottonwood Visitor Center
A gateway to trails in Cottonwood Spring, this small center has a gift shop & park displays.
ALT Palm Springs Visitors Center
The Tramway Gas Station is a landmark former Enco service station in Palm Springs, California, United States, so named because of its location at the foot of Tramway Road, the lone road leading to the base of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.
ALT Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway in Palm Springs, California, is the largest rotating aerial tramway in the world. It was opened in September 1963 as a way of getting from the floor of the Coachella Valley to near the top of San Jacinto Peak and was constructed in rugged Chino Canyon.
ALT Palm Springs Art Museum
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway in Palm Springs, California, is the largest rotating aerial tramway in the world. It was opened in September 1963 as a way of getting from the floor of the Coachella Valley to near the top of San Jacinto Peak and was constructed in rugged Chino Canyon.
ALT Walk of the Stars Palm Springs
The Palm Springs Walk of Stars is a walk of fame in downtown Palm Springs, California, where "Golden Palm Stars", honoring various people who have lived in the greater Palm Springs area, are embedded in the sidewalk pavement.
ALT Palm Springs Air Museum
The Palm Springs Air Museum, is a non-profit educational institution in Palm Springs, Riverside County, California. The Museum's mission is to exhibit, educate and eternalize the role of the World War II combat aircraft and the role the pilots and American citizens had in winning the war.
ALT Coachella Valley Preserve - Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve
Coachella Valley National Wildlife Refuge is a 3,709-acre protected area in the Coachella Valley, located east of Palm Springs near Palm Desert, California.
ALT: General Patton Memorial Museum
The General George S. Patton Memorial Museum, in Chiriaco Summit, California, is a museum erected in tribute to General George S. Patton on the site of the entrance of Camp Young, part of the Desert Training Center of World War II.
ALT Coxcomb Mountains
The Coxcomb Mountains are a mountain range located in eastern Riverside County, Southern California.

Preview the Tour

Stop 1: Joshua Tree Visitor Center

Stop 3: Samuelsons Rock

Stop 14 : ALT: Barker Dam

Stop 24 : Queen Valley

Stop 39 : Cottonwood Spring

How It Works

Additional Information

What do we do?

Simply put, Action Tour Guide is an audio guide, map, and tour book – all in one app! We are a GPS-enabled app-based tour that narrates information based on your location right on your phone. You can experience our driving and walking tours at your own pace and literally at any time of the day!

Lifetime Validity

Changing travel date? No worries! All individual tours come with lifetime validity.

No Network Needed

The tour works offline which means you do not need your phone network to enjoy the tour. However, we do suggest you download the tour at your home, hotel, visitor center, etc before you head out for a completely immersive experience.

Not an Entry Ticket

This is not an entry ticket.

Joshua Tree National Park Self-Guided Driving Tour

Tour Details

Welcome to the Joshua Tree National Park Tour

Starting the tour from the Joshua Tree Visitor Center

What You'll See

Joshua Tree Visitor Center

Quail Mounatin

Samuelsons Rock

Willow Hole

Lost Horse Valley

Hidden valley nature trail and McHaney Gang Hideout

Intersection Rock

Lost Horse Mountain and Gold theif

Right at Cap Rock

Queen Mountain

ALT : Desert Queen Mine

Skull Rock

Cushion Foxtail Cactus & Split Rock Loop Trail

ALT : Sky's The limit observatory and nature center

ALT : Oasis visitor center

Arch Rock Nature Trail

Ocotillo Patch

Mastodon Peak

Cottonwood Spring

Cottonwood Visitor Center

ALT Palm Springs Visitors Center

ALT Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.

ALT Palm Springs Art Museum

ALT Walk of the Stars Palm Springs

ALT Palm Springs Air Museum

ALT Coachella Valley Preserve - Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve

ALT: General Patton Memorial Museum

ALT Coxcomb Mountains

Preview the Tour

Stop 1: Joshua Tree Visitor Center

Stop 3: Samuelsons Rock

Stop 14 : ALT: Barker Dam

Stop 24 : Queen Valley

Stop 39 : Cottonwood Spring

How It Works

Additional Information

Reviews

Recommended Tours

Tour of California Self-Guided Driving Bundle

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