Trip Date: December 2011
Willow Hole Trail
In our opinion, the hike to Willow Hole, which is located in the Wonderland of Rocks region of Joshua Tree National Park, is one of the most rewarding hikes in the park. The trail passes through all of the scenery that Joshua Tree National Park is known for, not only the famous yucca that the park is named after, but all of those beautifully sculptured granite boulders and long desert vistas that has captivated visitors to this park for decades.
We’ve gone on many hikes all over the park in search of that perfect trail that leads into the heart of the Wonderland of Rocks. In all our travels through the deserts of Southern California, granite rock outcroppings are a photographer’s dream because of the endless formations created by Mother Nature. There are numerous outcroppings in the Mojave National Preserve, as well as historic Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, but nothing beats the granites of Joshua Tree. We thought that the trail into Rattlesnake Canyon from Indian Cove would give us good access. But after going on a hike with an experienced guide, we learned it took lots of rock climbing and trail finding skills to find your way. Perhaps a hike into Rattlesnake Canyon will be a future post in this blog. But we found that the Willow Hole Trail is much easier.
