One of the things that Chris and I wanted to do on our trip to California was to do a little bit of hiking. We found a “palm oasis” that we really wanted to see in the Coachella Valley Preserve. Knowing it was going to be hot we set out early one morning to go see a specific area that was the site of a lot of palm trees. Sadly when we got there we were told by some lovely Canadians that it was closed that day and we could only view it from afar. I guess they are trying to limit foot traffic to help preserve the site. The site is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. This beautiful stand of palm trees was so close but so far away — at least we got to see it from a distance.

.

.

Our new Canadian friends told us of a short hike to see another stand of palm trees which while not as impressive would satisfy our quest to see some up close in the desert. The Coachella Valley Preserve contains several palm oases, formed because San Andreas Fault lines allow water flowing underground to rise to the surface. So we started the hot hike, (even at 8:30 am) to go see one of these.

.

.

.

.

We finally reached the little stand of trees and tried to find a bit of shade to avoid the blazing sun for a bit. I am just a wimp when it comes to heat these days it seems. The palm trees were impressive and fun to be up close to look at them.

.

.

.

.

We truly live in an amazing country — such diversity in plant and animal life from coast to coast and while desert living may not be for me, I appreciate how the animals and plants adapt and adjust to live where temperatures can soar during the day. I am so glad we were able to make the trip to this area –even if we didn’t see the one area we went to hike we were able to adapt and do something else. Have you ever been to this preserve before? I would love to hear about it.