Hiking

Short Loop Trail Near Blackrock Canyon

Leave a comment

February can be a great time to hike the desert! The weather might be snowy and freezing, or like this particular day in 2016, it might be 75 degrees.

I went over to the Blackrock Campground area of Joshua Tree National Park and took the Short Loop Trail — about 3.5 miles round trip. A nice quiet hike, pretty tame by some standards. But after several months of inactivity, my muscles were definitely feeling this one.

The Short Loop is part of the California Riding and Hiking Trail. I chose to take the loop in a clockwise direction.

Looking behind, I had a great view of the mountains and trail. Spring grasses are popping up all over, but won’t last long. I’m reminded of the Bible verse “the grass withers, and the flower fades, but the Word of the Lord endures forever.”
This area has a whole web of intersecting trails. If you want to take the Short Loop Trail, you’ll need to take the first fork in the road, and follow the sign marked “Fault Trail.” This will skirt along the mountain for a half mile, then you’ll connect up with the Short Loop Trail. This section of the trail is very quiet with little to no hikers.
Howdy partner! You’re sure to spot some of these friends along the California Riding and Hiking Trail. It’s a beautiful area for horseback riding.

(When we lived in the Joshua Tree area, I loved hiking and blogging about new places I’d explore. At some point, I changed my blog address, and some of those posts were lost. I’m working on recovering them and adding them back in as fresh content on this site. This one was originally posted February 12, 2016.)

Leave a comment