Death Valley
Zabriskie Point – First stop! It’s a paved road and was easily accessible with the stroller. Sam, Joseph, and Allen were able to hike further down to see even more incredible views.
Twenty Mule Team Canyon – We then hopped back in the car and took a short drive through Twenty Mule Team Canyon. It had pretty views and gave Allen and Joseph a chance to climb.
Golden Canyon Trail – This trail was definitely a challenge with the stroller. We decided to bring it because we parked far away from the trail entrance. However, Shelly and I didn’t make it very far. Sam continued for a bit with Allen and Joseph and the boys had fun pretending that they were in various characters’ homes.
Devils Golf Course – According to NPS, it’s “an immense area of rock salt eroded by wind and rain into jagged spires.” The dirt road to get here was quite rough and the rocks were very sharp!
Badwater Basin Salt Flats – lowest point in North America at 282 ft. below sea level! Allen even ate the salt!
Joshua Tree National Park
We started the day bright and early at Oasis Visitors Center, where the park ranger guided us on a route that kept the kids in mind. Like other national parks, we mostly followed a driving road and pulled off at different stops for hikes and photo ops.
Cholla Cactus Garden – a beautiful garden filled with cholla cacti. It was an easy paved trail.
Arch Rock Trail – This was one of the best hikes of the day! It was a 1.2 mile there and back trail. The boys hiked the entire thing and Shelly was wheeled until we had to carry her. There were some beautiful Joshua Trees and a great arch rock to climb! It was a rewarding hike!
Skull Rock – Our next stop was just for a quick photo at Skull Rock!
Cap Rock Nature Trail – We made a quick stop at Keys View before heading to Cap Rock Nature Trail, a 0.4 mile loop on a paved trail. Again there were amazing Joshua Trees here and places for Allen and Joseph to climb.
Hidden Valley Trail – a 1 mile loop on a sandy trail with lots of great rocks for climbing. All 3 kids hiked beautifully!
Barker Dam Petroglyphs – After all of the previous hikes, we were really exhausted, but we squeezed in one last hike. On this 1.2 mile loop trail, we saw more beautiful Joshua Trees, some lizards, and ancient petroglyphs. We went back to the other visitors center and the kids earned their Junior Ranger badges. This was Shelly’s 2nd and Allen and Joseph’s 4th! We ended the day celebrating the first night of Chanukah eating doughnuts.
Mojave National Preserve / Las Vegas
Rings Loop Trail – This 1.5 mile trail in the Hole in the Wall region is unique in that visitors climb rings to vertically ascend the path. I was extremely hesitant to do this with Shelly, but Sam really pushed for it and it was worth it. The views were not the best, but the hike was rewarding! There were also some petroglyphs along the trail.
Seven Magic Mountains – About 30 minutes outside of Vegas is a colorful rock art installation in the middle of the desert. It was probably the most crowded place of the entire trip, but it was worth it!
Las Vegas – We had the entire afternoon before our red eye flight to spend in Vegas. We stopped at Container Park (although it was closed), the Bellagio Fountain show and Holiday Flower show, dinner at Burnt Offerings and the Neon Museum. The kids enjoyed and the grown ups did too. (Note: most of hotels offer free parking for 1-2 hours, which allowed us to enjoy the activities.)
