Joshua Tree National Park: California Riding Hiking Trail
The California Riding Hiking Trail is a 61 kilometre (38 mile) footpath across Joshua Tree National Park. It is typically hiked west to east starting from Black Rock Canyon Campground and ending at the trailhead near the Twentynine Palms park entrance. The trail crosses many park roads and while it avoids the popular attractions it travels through remote sections which offer a nice balance with the usual crowds and driving tours that the American National Parks are known for. There are not any water sources available near the trail so you need to cache water beforehand. The best locations to cache water is at Covington Flats (kilometre 14), Juniper Flats (kilometre 30), or Twin Tanks (kilometre 42). The trail junction at Covington flats involved dirt roads. I was unsure how my little economy rental car would handle anything other than asphalt and for that reason I only cached water at Juniper and Twin Tanks. Animals like ravens, coyotes, and other people have been known t...