From Sand to Snow in Palm Springs and Desert Hot Springs, CA

The wind was blowing fiercely as we drove into the Coachella Valley from the west. A brown haze hung over the air because of all the sand being blown about. We gaped at tall, steep San Jacinto mountain looming over us with its cap of snow and cloud. And then there are the windmills – 2,700 of them, to be exact. What an entrance!

The sand in the desert is fine and often given to pure dunes. Entering the north side of Palm Springs, the wind gives its final blast, sometimes covering the road with so much sand that the roads have to be blocked off until they are cleared.

North of the highway, in Desert Hot Springs, the wind didn’t abate much while we were there. This is where our RV park was, and it was often windy. Maybe for this reason, Desert Hot Springs is a poorer cousin to the lushness of Palm Springs to the south. It is certainly more affordable.

Once we passed the final blast of air, left the sand behind us, and drove deeper into Palm Springs, the wind calmed and we found ourselves in a lush oasis. The native Cahuilla Indians thought that the mountain was sacred. Streams and springs here provided them with water and pools for bathing and cooling. Later, Europeans found that the springs and the climate were restorative. They came here to recuperate from a variety of illnesses such as asthma, influenza, and tuberculosis. Sanatoriums and hotels opened. And later, Hollywood arrived.

The studios of Hollywood had a two-hour rule: contracted actors had to be able to show up at the studio in less than two hours for last-minute film shoots. In the 1920’s, long before Los Angeles traffic got so crazy, that put Palm Springs on the map for many of them. Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., and – yes – Marilyn Monroe schmoozed in the hotels and bars, played tennis and golf, and even bought homes. They enjoyed the privacy that this place gave them. Others such as Elvis Presley, Elizabeth Taylor, and Sonny Bono, and Leonardo DiCaprio had or still do have homes here.

I looked up the addresses of some of the stars and we set off for a bike ride to find them. I quickly discovered that it was an impossible task. Unconcerned about movie stars, Cal just wanted a bike ride, and so we zipped past (maybe) Liberace and Clark Gable’s homes. George Hamilton’s was up on a cliffside. Determined, I looked for Dean Martin’s home, but had an issue with the house numbers. The home which I think was his is boarded up and being renovated. It was a good thing I gave up, because I enjoyed the ride more once we did.

The homes in the neighborhoods of the stars all have a contemporary design and gorgeous landscaping. I liked this one, with all of its fun signs and sayings.

Palm Springs has several bike trails laid out. Sometimes we were on actual bike paths, sometimes on roads, but we mostly had our own lane. I really felt that we had seen the city when we were finished, and wished that more small cities would have interesting trails that are so well-marked.

Built in the 1920’s and converted to a doctor’s office in the 1930’s, the former home below is in downtown Palm Springs.

While we were there, we had a fine lunch on the sidewalk in front of a cafe. Afterward, we walked Palm Canyon Drive to window shop and look at the “Walk of the Stars”.

One attraction that Palm Springs has is the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, and we rode it up to the top.

We’ve been on a lot of cable car rides, but this was the first one we’ve ridden on that rotates all the way around. The car was full of people, but it didn’t matter – we had a great view all the way up.

At the top, it’s a whole different world! The aerial tram is the entryway to Mount San Jacinto State Park. All of a sudden we were in a pine tree forest with snow under our feet.

We started walking on a trail that led directly out of the visitors center. It soon became icy and treacherous. A short way into the forest, we decided that we would choose the shortest trail option that would take us back to the tram. Did I mention that it was also very cold?

We had chosen a beautiful clear day for the trip up – clear, except for that perpetual haze over the windy sand dunes. Across that haze, closer to the opposite mountain range, lay Desert Hot Springs and our RV park.

I had chosen this park because it sits on a mineral hot springs. Owing to that, there is a large hot tub as well as two swimming pools that are fed by the water from the springs.

We have been in an RV pool maybe only once in our years of RVing, but we did get into this one. The mineral water coming up out of the ground is so hot that it has to be cooled. We both got in, and preferred the warmer water in the hot tub over the water in the pool. It felt wonderful.

I had seen signs for a hiking trail outside of our park. I thought a hike might be nice on the day before we left, and Cal went with me. Kim Nichol trail is new and is supposed to be a five mile loop. It was really a treat to not have to get in the truck; all we had to do was walk down a dirt road.

That road had some interesting things to see along the way.

And there was this:

The trail was excellent hiking, although we had to do a fair amount of climbing. There was often deep sand on the hills, which really made for a strenuous thigh workout.

The good news is that much of the sand on the trail was not so deep and provided soft padding for our feet. At the top of every hill we were always rewarded by breathtaking views. Patches of yellow, purple and white flowers added to the pretty landscape.

Summiting one of the hills, we came upon this unexpected sight. This rocky ridge was a surprise until we were right up on it.

Other trails criss crossed the desert. We finally got tired of climbing what were starting to seem like mountains. Was the the trail ever going to loop us back in the direction in which we had come? We ditched the Kim Nichol trail and hopped on one of these other trails to make our way back. Sorry, Kim! When we arrived home, my Fitbit read that we had hiked five miles, including the dirt road we’d had to walk on at either end. I say that’s good enough!

There is another snow capped range to the north of Mt. San Jacinto. I’ll leave you with an excellent view of Mt. San Gorgonio, along with some of the yellow desert poppies that we had seen. We were graced with this sight as we wended our way homeward from our hike.

Next time – California highways lead us back to Arizona