Hiking to 49 Palms Oasis in Joshua Tree

This could be the perfect hike for a four-year-old. In fact, it was the perfect hike for three four-year-olds (friends of our four-year-old, Catherine) and our seven-month-old twins. We left Pasadena at 7am on a recent Saturday and were at the 49 Palms Oasis trailhead by 9:30am. This trailhead is accessed from outside the park by a small, inconspicuous road that comes in from Twenty Nine Palms. There’s no place to pay an entrance fee so this has to be one of the few places in the National Park System that is free.

There weren’t many cars, surprising for a beautiful, cool weekend in SoCal. As we set off from the trailhead, it was hard not to notice the signs warning us that people die on the trail. Unfortunately, people die all too often from simple things, like dehydration, which sets off a chain reaction of problems. Along the way, we saw people hiking without water, which amazes us. We had not only cool weather, but also plenty of water and lots of food (you never know). We hadn’t hiked with the twins yet, but this is only a three-mile round trip and a moderate elevation change between the trailhead and the oasis.

The Trail

Never having hiked to an oasis, we didn’t know what to expect. Along the way, Chris kept singing Midnight at the Oasis, a horrible song from his childhood. The trail passes through very rocky terrain and has a few small hills to cross along the way. It is well-maintained and just dry enough that when the oasis comes into view, it seems like, well, a mirage. Against a backdrop of the Mojave desert, there is a remarkably green grove of palm trees that starts out as a speck in the distance but gradually becomes a cool, shady and perfect place to have a lunch on one of the abundant flat rocks.

An Oasis?

It seems very odd that there’s water in such a place, but the rain that falls on the surrounding hills moves gradually into small valleys like this one, where it comes to the surface and sustains a remarkable grove of fan palms. There other oasis day hikes in Joshua Tree as well and they would be worth seeking out.

The trail back was a bit warmer as it became later in the day, but it was still a more than manageable temperature for a great, easy first hike with our babies.

Recommendations

Our backpacks were an Osprey Poco Plus (awesome) and a Kelty (basic and light). We will be getting another Osprey for future hikes. For shoes, good hiking shoes are recommended, though the children did well in running shoes. For water, we use Camelbak 3-liter bladders (no reason to buy smaller) in our backpacks and carry extra bottles. Always wear sunglasses, especially in the high desert.

For the official National Park Service page, go here.