East Deception Canyon

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY EIGHT

The weather in the desert was very nice today; it never reached 100º so I decided to go for a daytime hike. I guess I was so excited about it that I forgot my camera and sunscreen on my kitchen table when I left. I ended up taking pictures with my phone and for some reason half of them didn't download properly. I guess it was fitting I went to a place called East Deception Canyon. I deceived myself into thinking this would be a great hike.

East Deception Canyon is a large canyon that drains from Joshua Tree National Park into the Coachella Valley. I think the main deception of the canyon is that it doesn't appear to be as long as it is. You drive up a rocky dirt road to get to the parking area just south of the park boundary. I took pictures of the beginning of this hike but they are lost in the ether somewhere.

The canyon is long and while you should be able to drive up the whole thing you can't. National Parks tend to overdo whatever they are doing. I think places in Joshua Tree that should be open to vehicular traffic are not and other places have been overdeveloped. It's not that I mind walking, I just like getting as far as possible. So, if I can drive farther, I can hike farther. Oh well.

Part way up the canyon there's a big stick on top of a hill. I figured it marked a mine or was a benchmark or marked something of interest but NO. It was a stick in the ground.

The canyon was completely dry but it is not always. There is evidence that water comes down here in depths over eight feet. I cannot imagine what this place looks like during a thunderstorm. It has to be amazing.

I hike for miles and never seem to get any closer to the mountains. Maybe next time I'll try from the top down and see how that goes.

There was one notable thing I liked in this canyon. Some of the erosion was very interesting. Everything else? Not so much.