Adventures of Tin Can Lulu

Welcome to the 2025 adventures with Earle and Laura. We kicked off the new year with a trip to two of our favorite desert National Parks in Southern California, Joshua Tree and Death Valley National Parks in late January. Both of these parks were a revisit, but there are always new things to see and do. Earle named this:

Laura’s Big 2025 Desert Birthday Trip.

Tin Can Lulu stayed home and we flew to Las Vegas, rented a car and stayed in hotels (crazy thing for us to do).

The end of January in this part of the US has temps that average around 67 or so for day time highs. Well, we were there for a cold spell. Felt like we were in Ohio and dealing with temps in the 30’s. We survived and left a few dollars at REI in Las Vegas to supplement the cold weather gear we had packed! Hiking was the activity that we did throughout this trip. We hiked 40 miles on the ten day birthday trip.

Joshua Tree was our first stop. We decided to stay at Auto Camp (alas, run by Hilton) which consists of Airstream trailers for accommodations. Of course the Airstreams in Auto Camp are not anything like Tin Can Lulu, but we gave it a try!

Joshua Tree NP park is characterized by rugged rock formations and stark desert landscapes. Named for the region’s twisted, bristled Joshua trees. Why Joshua? Because the tree reminded the Mormon settlers of the prophet Joshua with outreached arms to God. The park straddles the cactus-dotted Colorado Desert and the Mojave Desert, which is higher and cooler. Of the park’s current 792,623 acres, 591,624 is designated wilderness. There are 32 trailheads and 191 miles of hiking trails.

The highlight of our visit to Joshua Tree NP was a ranger lead hike at Key’s Ranch. Keys Ranch was built in 1910 and lived in by William and Frances Keys along with their seven children (three of whom died and were buried at the ranch) for over 60 years. Having first moved to the desert in search of gold, William Keys started this ranch as he built up a life for himself with mining and ranching. In 1917, Frances married and joined William at the ranch where they started a family and continued to build up the ranch. By not letting anything go to waste and figuring out how to reuse old parts they were able to build a prosperous ranch and mining operation in a seemingly hostile environment. The ranch consist of 80 acres within Joshua Tree NP and still has the Keys private family cemetery, a secret location on the ranch.

Other hikes included Arch Rock, Heart Rock, Skull Rock, Face Rock and Baker Dam.

Food in the town of Joshua Tree was amazing. A few hidden gems including the BEST pizza we have ever eaten at Sky High Pizza, amazing breakfast and lunch food at the Cross Roads Café. The Joshua Tree Saloon had delicious tacos and beer also! If you ever go you need to try these eateries!

Three hours from Joshua Tree is Death Valley NP. These words describe this park perfectly: “so empty, so vast, so simple, so quiet”. We have lost count of the times we have visited Death Valley over the years and it never disappoints.

Death Valley is the largest national park (a mere 3,422,024 acres) in the contiguous United States, as well as the hottest, driest and lowest of all the national parks. It contains Badwater Basin, the second-lowest point ( in the Western Hemisphere and lowest in North America at 282 feet) below sea level.

We stayed at the iconic inn the Oasis of Death Valley (formerly the Furnace Creek Inn and The Inn in Death Valley). The Pacific Coast Borax Company (of Twenty Mule Team fame) built the Furnace Creek Inn in 1927. Red tile roofs, stucco exteriors, archways, arcades and towers were inspired by the old Spanish Missions on the California Coast. The Inn’s wings wrap around a lovely garden of palms and flowing water, a nod to both mission courtyards and the Hollywood image of a fantasy desert oasis. The lower levels constructed of local stone seem to be a natural extension of the alluvial fan pouring out of Furnace Creek Wash. The colors of golden stucco, russet roof tiles and turquoise window trim all match the badlands at Zabriskie Point and Artists Drive. Hollywood elites from the golden era such as Marlon Brando, Clark Gable, and Carole Lombard all have stayed at this inn.

We hiked a few of our favorites in this park, Golden Canyon, Gower Gulch Loop, Natural Bridge Canyon, Devils Golf Course, Artist Palette, Badwater Salt Flat and Sand Dunes. The view of Telescope Peak was amazing even with the snow covered tops. Brought back memories of when we hiked this peak (elevation is 11,331 feet) with our niece Sierra, 17 plus years ago.

Our last day was spent in Las Vegas. BUT we did not do any shows or gambling on the strip. We explored Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area located in Nevada’s Mojave Desert.  It’s known for geological features such as towering red sandstone peaks and the Keystone Thrust Fault, as well as Native American petroglyphs. Panoramic viewing spots dot the 13-mile Scenic Drive and there is tons of hiking in this park. It is on our list to revisit in the future!

Be on the look out for our upcoming adventures for 2025.