It was 1964, and I was 17 years old. My parents would go on weekend trips to various parks and take me along. At that time in my life, I had little direction on what I wanted to do with my life. While listening to a presentation on the Geology of the Park by a Ranger-Naturalist, I became excited about the idea of understanding the intricacies of nature and being able to interpret it to people. I went on to obtain a degree in Biology with a minor in Recreation at San Diego State University and subsequently became a California State Park Ranger.
Sincerely,
Joshua Tree National Park
This iconic park preserves portions of two spectacular desert ecosystems. The Colorado Desert in the eastern portion of the park features natural gardens of creosote bush, ocotillo and cholla cactus. The higher, slightly cooler Mojave Desert offers dazzling vistas of Joshua trees and yucca. The vast park also contains spectacularly sculpted formations of a type of rock known as monzogranite and is a mecca for rock climbers around the world.
State(s): California
Established: 1994
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Greetings from Joshua Tree National Park
This is where I did my first backpacking trip 50 years ago at the tender age of 6. I’ve spent my life exploring and enjoying our public lands all throughout our nation. As an educator I brought students out into some of those places and saw the joy nature and…
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Greetings from Joshua Tree National Park
We arrived at our B&B in the darkness of a December night just outside of Joshua Tree National Park. As we entered the home, I noticed two nearby large Joshua trees glowing in the moonlight like phantoms of the ancient past. We couldn't wait for morning to come when we…
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Greetings from Joshua Tree National Park
It didn't take long into our relationship to realize nature would be our safe haven. Humans are programmed to make judgement calls every single day and sometimes those feelings save our lives and other times they really hurt. Think about a time when you had a terrible feeling in your…
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