Date: 25th January, 2013
Distance: 1 mile (circuit)
Time: 1 h
In January 2013 I had the marvellous opportunity to attend a conference at Palm Springs in the US - my first (and so far only) trip to the northern hemisphere. On my first free afternoon, I hired a bike and peddled as quickly as possible to the nearest bushwalking site, eager to get a taste for the American hiking country.
The nearest tracks, as it turns out, are clustered around Indian Canyons, a few km south of Palm Springs. Even with my adrenaline-driven feverish peddling I couldn't ignore the painful truth - it was late afternoon and I would have to settle for the very shortest walk, or risk cycling home in the dark (and without a light).
The toll attendant looked dubiously at my mode of transport while I forked out $9 for entry and wondered if I was meant to give a tip. All of my tipping experiences until this point had been confusing and embarrassing, and my limited understanding of the American phenomenon did not cover this unforseen scenario. Two years on and I'm still clueless.
One thing about riding in the desert is that distances are misleading, and what appears to be flat can be quite steep. This I discovered after taking the shortest road route to the closest walking track, Andreas Canyon, wondering why my legs were burning, until I looked back and realised I had climbed a small hill.
The toll attendant looked dubiously at my mode of transport while I forked out $9 for entry and wondered if I was meant to give a tip. All of my tipping experiences until this point had been confusing and embarrassing, and my limited understanding of the American phenomenon did not cover this unforseen scenario. Two years on and I'm still clueless.
One thing about riding in the desert is that distances are misleading, and what appears to be flat can be quite steep. This I discovered after taking the shortest road route to the closest walking track, Andreas Canyon, wondering why my legs were burning, until I looked back and realised I had climbed a small hill.
 |
| Looking back towards Palm Springs from near the start of Andreas Canyon |
The parking lot and picnic area near the start of the walk were crowded with visitors. So much for a quiet walk in the desert... but as it turns out most of them just sort of milled around and took photos, so it wasn't too bad on the trail.
 |
| Picnic area devoid of folks (taken after doing the walk). Yikes those things are huge! |
Andreas Canyon supposedly supports over 150 species of plants within a 1 km radius, but mostly all I could see was giant fan palms and bushes. Not that this was a problem - I've never visited a desert before, so everything was cool.
The hiking trail runs alongside Andreas Creek, which is something like an oasis in the middle of the desert. Aside from the striking contrast between bleak, empty desert and luscious greenery hugging the creek, two things stood out for me on this walk: awesome rock formations and towering, grandfatherly fan palms.
 |
| Andreas Creek |
 |
| More Andreas Creek |
After half an hour at a very lazy pace, I met a fence that blocks further passage up the canyon. For an alternative return route, I crossed over the creek and returned via the south bank. From this side you get an interesting new perspective from outside the canyon.
 |
| Looking south over rolling desert hills... barren country away from the canyons |
 |
| Riding home. I never got used to being on the right hand side |
Unfortunately, the weather turned foul on my last two days in Palm Springs, so this was the only chance I had at hiking while I was in the US. Palm Springs reputedly only receives 14 mm of rain annually, and for some cruel reason most of it fell on my day off. Hopefully I'll have the opportunity to return again and explore more of the country one day.
No comments:
Post a Comment