Desert Region
The Desert Region cuts through five counties of the southeastern portion of California and encompasses millions of acres of protected lands. This vast region is very dog-friendly, from the
Greater Palm Springs area (cities of the Coachella Valley), to Joshua Tree and Anza Borrego and up to Death Valley.
The stories below give you some great ideas of how to get the most doggone fun out of the region. A reminder, when traveling in the deserts in winter or summer, be sure you and your pup are well hydrated and be aware of your surroundings.
Here are some tips to keep everyone safe.
Bronco at Hotel Paseo - Photo Credit: @mr_bronco_fuzzy_pants
This three story, 150-room addition to Marriott’s Autograph Collection opens in March just steps from El Paseo, the “Rodeo Drive” of the desert. It’s the first luxury hotel for the upscale shopping district and the first new hotel for the community in 30 years. Among amenities adding to the retro ambience at Hotel Paseo is a vintage Airstream trailer with its own “back yard.” more »
Boutique is sweet, especially when it’s a
Kimpton. This new, 154-room, six-story property is the first full-service hotel to be built downtown in decades. It’s part of a redevelopment project that eventually will encompass many retail and entertainment venues adjacent to the
Palm Springs Art Museum.
more »
Photo Credit: @_decant
The name sounds intimidating, and the 1.6 million-acre Mojave National Preserve in San Bernardino County can certainly be that. But in winter, when T-shirt weather often prevails, it’s a delightful place to roam and take in rugged mountains, peaked cinder cones, seas of dunes, exotic plants and other sights. Dogs must be leashed (except when hunting)—a sensible idea considering the spines, thorns and snakes that are part of the rugged landscape. And there’s lots to see and experience, including the largest Joshua tree forests in the world in the Cine Dome and Shadow Valley areas. more »
Photo Credit: Alan Levine (CC)
Think Death Valley is nothing but a parched and endless patch of wind-blown sand? You’ve been watching too many old TV shows. This Southern California national park is in reality one of the most colorful and breathtaking places on earth, and inevitably takes first-time visitors by surprise. Nowhere else on the planet will you see salt-crusted badlands 282 feet below sea level walled in by mountains 11,000 feet high. Geological oddities abound, all encased in air so clear it seems like it could shatter. The valley’s human history, incorporating cowboys, Indians, burro-packing prospectors, outlaws, stranded pioneers, wealthy eccentrics and 20-mule teams hauling borax, is equally rugged and colorful. So what’s there to do with your dog? The quick answer: prepare to be awed. more »
Abby at Joshua Tree National Park
Photo Credit: jesslynncline (CC)
Even if you’ve never been to Joshua Tree National Park or Anza Borrego Desert State Park, you know these two spectacular parcels of public lands from photographs of exotic Joshua trees (a member of the agave family named by Mormon pioneers after the biblical figure), silhouetted against a sunset sky; rock climbers negotiating surreal boulder formations; and, in the state park, spring wildflowers stretching as far as the eye can see. While activities with dogs are severely restricted at both preserves, enough access exists for both you and your furry sidekick to have a tail-waggin’ good time.
As at most national parks, regulations at Joshua Tree prohibit dogs from accompanying their people on trails—but not from driving through to admire the scenery or enjoy a picnic at a site surrounded by the fuzzy, forklike agave from which the park takes its name. more »