Indio/Palm Springs – Small Wanders

17-20 Feb 2023: Desert Hot Springs

by JamesFebruary 17, 2023November 30, 2023Day Trips / Indio/Palm Springs / RV Parks / Sightseeing / Trips

Our first trip of 2023 was supposed to be to Agua Caliente County Park Jan 2 2023 but we had to cancelled to help family. Which ended up being less disappointing because it rained the entire week and that area is prone to flash floods.

So we postponed our first RV trip to February, combining a family visit to Desert Hot Springs & a few days at Anza-Borrego State Park, to hopefully see wildflowers. With all the rain in southern California this season, the potential for a ‘better-than-usual’ (but not quite ‘superbloom’) wildflower bloom is anticipated.
We stayed at the Palm Springs/Joshua Tree KOA, which is close to our family in Desert Hot Springs. KOAs campgrounds are very family oriented with lots of activities for kids and adults. The Palm Springs/Joshua Tree KOA is especially family-friendly with mini golf, pickelball, bike/pedal car rentals, and a ‘kiddie train’ that loops through the park. We did not spend much time at the park since we were here to spend time with family. But we did enjoy the 3 different temperature (104°, 100°, 98°) hot springs hot tubs one evening which was wonderful. We plan to make this KOA a regular stop when we pass this way with Howie.

Our main family outing was to the Riverside County Fair in Indio which happened to coincide with our visit. We are not much for carnival rides but walking around the fairgrounds and people-watching is always fun. Plus there were probably a hundred diverse food booths serving up the usual ‘unusual’ unhealthy but delicious fair-food.

Next stop, a 90min drive to Palm Canyon RV Resort, Borrego Springs CA. One big plus of this RV resort is they allow check-in at 12:30. Which is perfect with an 11am departure at the KOA.

22 Jan 2022: Salton Sea

by JamesJanuary 22, 2022April 16, 2024California / Day Trips / Hikes / Indio/Palm Springs / Sightseeing / State Parks / Trips

After a lot of driving to Anza-Borrego & Fonts Point yesterday, another long drive into Joshua Tree will wait till next trip. So while Carol visited family, I did a shorter drive to the Salton Sea. I’ve seen photos of this area and thought it looked interesting photographically. It was still windy and there were great clouds that made for beautiful light.

19-23 Jan 2022: Indian Waters RV Resort, Indio

by JRWilkinsonJanuary 19, 2022April 16, 2024California / Campgrounds / Indio/Palm Springs / RVing / Trips

Our first trip in 2022 was a short 5-day trip to visit family in Palm Desert & Indio, CA. This area is popular with snowbirds this time of year, their peak season. The weather in this area is perfect for escaping the frigid north and east winter conditions. Even though we live in SoCal and could find warm places to RV closer to home. We prefer the Palm Springs area because of family, the hiking & photography possibilities. Joshua Tree National Park, Anza-Borrego State Park, and Salton Sea Recreation Area are an hour out of town.
We stayed in-town to be close to family, at a RV resort with full hookups – Indian Waters. It has great reviews on the Good Sam’s website. It’s just a few miles further away than Shadow Hills RV Resort, where we stayed the last time we rv’d to Indio to visit family.
Indian Waters has a variety of activities and perks like complimentary breakfasts. Pickleball games & socials, water aerobics & yoga classes keep the many snowbirds busy. We didn’t stay long enough to enjoy all their hospitality but will definitely stay here again. I highly recommend the lawn sites versus gravel but they are all spacious with large close-to-level concrete pads.

Between visits with family, we did a day-trip to Anza-Borrego State Park instead of Joshua Tree this trip. I also spent a day on the north shore of Salton Sea to Salton Sea Recreation Area & Bombay Beach.

Indio “Glamping”+Joshua Tree Day Trip

by JRWilkinsonMarch 14, 2021April 16, 2024California / Campgrounds / Day Trips / Indio/Palm Springs / Joshua Tree National Park / National Parks / RVing / Sightseeing / Trips

For our third trip of 2021, we wanted to visit family in Desert Hot Springs & Indio Mar 14-18th. Shadow Hills RV Resort in Indio, CA was a great location to stay since it’s less than a mile from family. This RV park has all the amenities allowed by Covid-19 restrictions.
Fortunately we arrived Sunday because Monday the winds were fierce – blowing steady 35mph with gusts to 60+. By Tuesday morning the winds has dropped & weather warm & beautiful.

Full hookups, cable tv, laundry, pool, dog parks (tiny fenced areas), daily trash pickup at each site, showers and restrooms scattered throughout the park. The RV sites are level, wide concrete slabs with hedges separating you from your nearest neighbor. Being close to Coachella (annual music festival, canceled this year), there are many tent sites which were unoccupied.

Indio is ~40mins from Joshua Tree’s Cottonwood Springs Road south entrance. So after visiting family, I did an afternoon excursion to Joshua Tree. The topography of the southern entrance is quite different from the northern 29 Palms entrance. Most of the rock formation points-of-interest are in the northern side of the park. The Ocatillo Patch and Cholla Cactus Gardens features are in the central valley so I focused my photography efforts there. The 40mi drive to the Cottonwood Springs entrance has a much longer incline that the 29 Palms. If I were towing our trailer, I would definitely use the 29 Palms entrance.

Desert X 2021 Art Festival was also underway with 9 environmental art installations. The number of installations is greatly reduced this year due to Covid-19 but still worthwhile. The weather in March is near perfect (~70degF) except for the occasional wind storm like a day ago. The short hikes to the various installations, which are scattered throughout the area, were pretty easy. Although ParaPivot is quite a steep climb up a winding concrete driveway. We went on Wednesday so no tickets were required. Thurs-Sun tickets are required to keep the crowds down.
We saw 4 of the 9 installations. We were trying to find the fifth, The Art of Taming Horses, which ended up being a scavenger hunt without success. Turns out the installation will not be viewable until after April 9th. The Women’s Qualities installation is in the Sunnylands Center & Gardens which closes at 4pm so we missed it by 20mins. Check the Desert X website for ticket & exhibit information: https://desertx.org. You can download the DesertX app for detailed descriptions about the art & artists plus locations.