Welcome to the HDTS Desert Destination Log. This log is the result of a broad community of contributors with a diverse range of interests. One thing that we all share in common is our love for this area with all it’s complex, weird, deeply idiosyncratic people and places. Most touristic guides to the area feature a list of “greatest hits” - but we know that there is so much more out there to be discovered, often right under our noses - like the best Marine bar in 29, or the film classics movie theater in a residential garage in Yucca Valley, or the monthly pancake breakfast at the Copper Mountain Mesa Community Center.

The information in this log has been slowly gathered over time - originally James Trainor and Andrea Zittel started putting together a guide for their students of the Institute of Investigative Living. Then former A-Z West Wagon Station Residents started to add to this list and now members of both our HDTS and larger local community have contributed an even wider array of destinations. And of course, there are still so many places to add.

Because many of the descriptions are subjective and based on personal experiences, there may be more than one entry on a particular site or subject. In most instances destinations have websites or are further researchable online or with a smart phone – so use this guide as a helpful list of possible things to explore and then do further research to plan your visits. And always, when exploring, be respectful to local residents, plants, and fauna. Remember that this is a fragile ecosystem - walk lightly, and above all respect people’s privacy.

The Desert Destination Log was originally a printed publication that we sold at the HDTS HQ. We still plan to reprint the Log on our risograph printer someday, but thought it would be handy for people to have access to the Log online, too.

At the bottom of this page, you will find a wish list of future subjects - please send us entries on these and more at info@highdeserttestsites.com.

Thank you!
HDTS

The name Joshua Tree refers to both the National Park, and a small unincorporated town and its surrounding community. The community of Joshua Tree sits roughly in the middle of the Morongo Basin — a long basin that is traversed from west to east by a single highway called Hwy 62 (also known as 29 Palms Hwy). Each community in the Morongo Basin has a distinct character. Joshua Tree is considered to be made up of rock climbers, new-agers, hippies, and people from LA (or other urban areas) who own desert weekend retreats or run Airbnb businesses. Twenty years ago Joshua Tree consisted mostly of ramshackle homestead cabins and a few small businesses that would close during the hottest months of the summer. Now Joshua Tree has become a major tourist destination and is flooded with vacationers year-round.

Yucca Valley is the largest town in the Morongo Basin. It is incorporated and is governed by a Mayor and Town Council. It is where you will drive for a plethora of larger grocery stores, Home Depot, Super Wal-Mart, and an assortment of food establishments. (Twentynine Palms also has some large grocery stores and an assortment of restaurants and other businesses). The far west end of Yucca Valley near the intersection of Hwy 62 and Pioneertown road is known as Old Town and has the best antique stores in the area. Further east, off of Old Woman Springs Road, is a vibrant family run swap-meet called Sky Village Marketplace (which also has a giant art installation created by Bob Carr). The best Mexican food in the Morongo Basin is a small taqueria in the back of Kasa, a Mexican food market.

Morongo Valley is the gateway town to the Morongo Basin. It is the most western of the small of communities along Hwy 62, and the first that you enter after coming up the grade. The topography in Morongo tends to be hillier and has more vegetation. It is home to the Morongo Preserve, a lush oasis that has water even during the warmer months of the year. One of our favorite businesses in Morongo is Holly’s Trading Post where you will find all sorts of amazing vintage artifacts from all over the world for incredibly reasonable prices. After Holly’s don’t forget to stop at Cactus Mart for the best selection of succulents and cacti in the larger Morongo Basin.

Landers is a small community north of Yucca Valley, accessible by Hwy 247 or Old Woman Springs Road. The general name Landers is often used interchangeably to refer to both the community of Landers and its sister community of Flamingo Heights. An interesting fact: because of its elevation, Landers actually has many more Joshua Trees than the town of Joshua Tree.

Twentynine Palms sits at the west end of the Morongo Basin. The town of Twentynine Palms is perhaps best known for the nearby Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center. It is also the site of the 29 Palm Oasis (around which the 29 Palms Inn was built) and it has over twenty-five murals depicting the history and native elements of the area. Not too far from 29 Palms Inn is a small Indian reservation belonging to the Twentynine Palms Band of Mission Indians. There are no coffee shops in Twentynine Palms (as of this writing), but a plethora of establishments where you can get massages and Marine haircuts.

Pioneertown proper is located at the top of Pioneertown Road. It was originally built the 1940s as an old-west motion picture set. Movies were shot on Mane Street and the actors stayed in what is now the Pioneertown Motel. Some of the films shot in the area include The Cisco Kid and Judge Roy Bean.

Pioneertown has an interesting history and wound up in the possession of USC and the Catholic Church before being sold off to private individuals who then moved in to make real homes in buildings that once were fake movie homes. Now, as tourism increases, businesses are starting to take over these structures as Pioneertown invents itself yet again. There is also a gun slinging fake shootout every weekend, and Pappy and Harriet’s, a bar and restaurant that is a widely acclaimed music venue and weekend destination.

The area commonly known as Pioneertown also includes other smaller adjacent communities like Rimrock and a large swath of Pipes Canyon.

Wonder Valley is the large open area just east of Twentynine Palms — there is no center “town” in Wonder Valley, but rather a scattering of homestead cabins that that extend about twenty miles out into the desert. Two parallel highways traverse the valley, one on the north side, Amboy Road (which eventually turns north toward Death Valley and Las Vegas), and one on the south side, Highway 62 (which you would take if you wanted to go straight to Arizona or the Colorado River). The heart of Wonder Valley, both literally and figuratively is a roadhouse restaurant bar run by the Sibley family called The Palms. Wonder Valley is home to an extremely diverse population and is the best location in the Morongo Basin for those who want solitude and wide-open spaces.

Amboy was once a major stop along the famous Route 66, but after cross country traffic was rerouted to a major interstate to the north it dwindled down to more of a ghost town. There are a total of ten surviving buildings and a population of about four. Amboy has been used for film and movie shoots over the years, and it is also the site of an art residency program called Matza Amboy organized by the Swiss artist Séverin Guelpa. To get to Amboy from Joshua Tree, take Amboy Road through the length of Wonder Valley. After the road crests near the Sheephole Mountains, drive past the deep salt trenches on the left, as well as a turn off for Amboy Crater. If you continue past Amboy, you can take the road north to the Mojave Preserve.

There is so much to explore a few hours beyond the Joshua Tree area, both north and south. The Mojave Preserve is a National Monument with many different destinations within its boundaries, and Death Valley is about a four-hour drive from the Morongo Basin. You can even take tiny, isolated two-lane highways heading north until you connect with Interstate 15, which takes you directly into the heart of the Las Vegas Strip.

From the Morongo Basin you can either cut directly through the park or around either end to explore the area to the south. The Palm Springs area is a more developed string of communities with golf courses and shopping malls. The original city of Palm Springs is known for its richness of mid-century architecture, and it hosts an annual Modernism Week when some of the mid-century homes are open to the public.

The larger area around Palm Springs is called the Coachella Valley and there are many great hiking destinations throughout the valley. Further south is the Salton Sea and the the Imperial Valley, which is a vast agricultural area that continues to the border of Mexico.

To the east are Arizona and the Colorado River. High Desert locals go to the river in the summer to cool off (it’s best if you have access to a boat to explore in). Keep driving further east and you’ll get to places like Flagstaff and Phoenix.

There is so much to explore, from tiny roadside dining reached via nearly impassable dirt roads, to sprawling and bustling tourist destinations like the Grand Canyon. Keep driving…