Joshua Tree National Park has always had a glamourous cachet — it is , after all , just two hour away from Los Angeles , so it ’s no surprise the park has a fascinating history satisfy with Hollywood - style play .
1. Joshua Tree National Park includes two deserts.
Many multitude do n’t see Joshua Tree National Park is really composed of two distinct deserts . The southern tip of the Mojave Desert makes up its westerly edge and the Colorado Desert covers its easterly and southern areas . These desert have different meridian , and as a outcome , different ecosystem . The Colorado Desert ’s gentle slopes receive more yearly rain and are home to desert lavender , desert agave , and colorful ocotillo plants [ PDF ] .
The Joshua tree for which the park is name are more rife in the higher elevations on the Mojave Desert side . Thedensest increment of Joshua treesin the reality is found on the 1500 - fundament Cima Dome . The westerly end of the park even ascends into the 4000 - footSan Bernardino Mountains , dwelling of quake aspen , California juniper , and Douglas pine tree trees .
2. Despite its geological age, as a national park, Joshua Tree is a Millennial.
Joshua Tree is one of the young national parks in the country — it receive that designation in October 1994 . Joshua Tree now encompasses 800,000 acres , an area more or less the same size as Rhode Island [ PDF ] .
It ’s also one of themost pop national parks , as it ’s a simple two - hour ride from Los Angeles . Its popularity has been a sundry benediction : Joshua Tree has seen an average of3 million visitorsper class in the past few years , though its infrastructure was only built for 1 million per year .
This leads to long waits at the entrance gates and crowded camping ground . Much of the parking lot is n’t approachable by road , cause overrun trails in the easier - to - admission areas .
3. Joshua trees are not actually trees.
The Joshua tree is a member of theYucca genus , a genus of commonly acaulescent succulents . They can raise up to70 foot tall , though they can take up to half a 100 to hand their full size . The Joshua trees live for around 150 years , and it takes ten before their distinctive branches even get down to form .
Because they store moisture in their roots , Joshua trees are refer to as the “ groovy canteen of the desert . ” Squirrels and jackrabbits find water system by masticate on the tree during uttermost drought , which in turn allows war hawk and coyotes to find food .
The bush is only native to northwest Mexico and the American Southwest . Though there are still nearly a million presently growing throughout the Mojave Desert , like many other species , climate alteration has limit their range . By the closing of the century , environmentalist predict80 percentof Joshua trees will be wiped out .
4. Joshua trees were given their distinctive name by Mormon settlers.
The Cahuilla the great unwashed call Joshua treeshumwichawa . Traditionally , they used the hardy plant ’s leaves and seeds for baskets , sandals , and food , and even carved out its offset for use as container .
When Mormon settlers first arrived in the area in the 19th C , legend has itthat the distinctive tree diagram remind them of the Old Testament story of Joshua , the leader of the Israelites who hold his arms up to heaven in a prayer to God to run them across Canaan , hence the works ’s current name .
5. Joshua Tree National Park has a long human history.
Mormons may have given the home park its current sobriquet , but people are believed to have lived in the area for thousand of years . Therocky landscapeprovided shelter , as well as spring and flora for food . The park still carry artifacts from the Mojave , Serrano , Chemeheuvi , and Cahuilla tribes — include petroglyph carve into many of the John Rock geological formation . By the 1800s , cattlemen , miners , and homesteadershad begin to appearon the land .
6. It snows in Joshua Tree National Park.
The park is know for its heating system : The average high in the summer months is a roasting100 ° F. But like many deserts , it can become quite cold as well , and Charles Percy Snow in the high superlative is not unheard of . Temperatures have discharge below freezing in the wintertime — once get to arecord low of 10 ° Fin 1990 — and the green incur a dusting of snow about every year . It ’s actually too cold for most cacti to grow there .
In February 2021 , the commons watch a snow like it had n’t run across inover a X . The snow reached not only the usual higher elevations , but also the vale floor . The Joshua tree ostensibly bonk precipitation in any form , but the snow and ice typically disappear as speedily as they arrive .
7. The cover of U2’s famous album was not shot at Joshua Tree National Park …
The black and white panoramic picture on the arm of U2 ’s blockbuster 1987 albumThe Joshua Treewasn’t shot in the national park , though the image on the inside cover is in fact of one of the trees . The celebrated binding was really scud 200 statute mile away in Darwin , California .
Ona busbar triparound the Mojave Desert during the first day of shot , tether Isaac Bashevis Singer Bono learned of the scriptural origin of the nameJoshua treeand decided to make it the form of address of the isthmus ’s album . The next day , the blanket photo was taken in under half an hr by the now - famous lone Joshua tree in Darwin .
In 2011 , a Dutch music venue manager died in Joshua Tree National Park;some believedhe was searching for the spot used in U2 ’s record album cover , after he told fellow worker he wanted to visit it .
8. … The Eagles, however, did shoot an album cover at Joshua Tree National Park.
Joshua Tree National Park has a long history of inspiring artists , particularly musicians . The Eagles ’ self - titled 1972 debut album features a scenic sunset at the park . The photoshoot occurred during an nightlong tenting trip with the banding and photographer Henry Diltz .
As Don Henleyrecallsin the documentaryThe History of the Eagles , Part One , “ We had a bag of peyote buttons , a crowd of track mix , some tequila , a crowd of water , and some mantle . And the seven of us set out for Joshua Tree . ”
In the decades since , the park has continued to feature wide in music , vote byUSA Todayas one of thetop melodic attractionsin the world in 2015 . Joshua Tree National Park also serves as a backcloth in the music videos for Selena ’s “ Amor Prohibido , ” Missy Elliott ’s “ Lose Control , ” Ariana Grande ’s “ Into You , ” and Walk the Moon ’s “ One Foot . ”
9. Joshua Tree National Park is the site of music history’s most famous cremation.
One of the park ’s more gonzo euphony connections skirt the funeral of country - rock innovator Gram Parsons . Parsons was briefly a fellow member of the Byrds , introduce the Rolling Stones to country music , and give away Emmylou Harris . He inspect the park in September 1973 and die of an overdose in the nearby Joshua Tree Inn on September 19 .
During the trip , his route manager , Phil Kaufman , claimed Parsonsspoke of his desireto be cremate upon his death and have his ash tree scatter in Joshua Tree . To live up to the player ’s final wish , Kaufman and his friend posed as mortuary workers to intercept Parsons ’s body at the airport , stopped at a gas place for gasoline cannister , and drove to Joshua Tree National Park ’s Cap Rock formation , where they doused the body in gasoline and set it on fire before being catch .
Therewas no lawagainst slip a corpse , so instead the two adult male were only charged with misdemeanour theft for slip the casket , and were forced to pay off several little amercement . The motel where Parsons go is still in operation and his roomremains its most popular . Makeshift memorials pop up on Cap Rock , but Joshua Tree does n’t formally acknowledge Parsons ’s tie to the Mungo Park .
10. Some believe Joshua Tree National Park is a UFO hotspot.
Area 51 is n’t the only desert locale with an extraterrestrial reputation . Joshua Tree National Park has also been dubbed a UFO hot spot . Ufologist Dr. Steven Greer hosts “ impinging in the Desert , ” the globe ’s largest UFO group discussion , for three days every June in the park . The conference acquaint on alleged archaeological evidence of unknown and how to contact extraterrestrial living . UFO enthusiasts can even stay in aFuturo housewithin the park .
