Hidden Valley Trail in Joshua Tree National Park

Hidden Valley Trail is an easy, short but beautiful introduction to Joshua Tree National Park. Besides the interesting desert plant life, wildflowers (at the right season), and wildlife, you’ll also get to experience the tall, giant boulders that Joshua Tree National Park is known for. It is also a popular climbing area among rock climbers. If you love desert landscape and scrambling through boulders, this trail is definitely fun to visit.

STATS:

Where:

Hidden Valley Nature Trail
Coords: 34°00’44.6″N 116°10’04.9″W

Parking:

There is a nice paved parking lot in front of the trailhead.

Fee:

There is a fee to enter Joshua Tree National Park. The entrance fee is $30 per vehicle for 7-day. You can also either purchase a park-specific annual pass for $55 or get an America the Beautiful National Parks Pass for $80. For up to date fee info, click here.

Restroom:

There are vault toilets at the trailhead.

Distance:

1 mile loop

Elevation Gain:

100 ft

Level:

easy

Estimated Completion Time:

30 minutes to 2 hours depending on how much you want to explore the rock areas

Ideal Weather:

Spring is the best season to visit. Summer can get very hot while winter can be freezing cold.

Ideal Time:

Mornings or evenings have the best light and weather. It’s also less crowded.

Accessibily:

Due to a few rocky staircases along the way, this trail is not wheel-chair or stroller accessible.

Dog-friendly:

Dogs are not allow on trails at the park.

Weather:

Video:

THE ADVENTURE:

Getting There

Hidden Valley Trail is located on Park Boulevard, closer to Twentynine Palms entrance (instead of Cottonwood entrance). If you’re coming from Skull Rock, the turnout for the parking lot is on the left, immediately after passing Baker Dam Road.

The Hike

The trailhead is pretty easy to find. The start of the trail is marked by a short fenced walkway leading into the rocky valley. There are a couple of short rock staircases winding through the rock wall. Once you climb over this gap, you’ll reach the sandy desert floor. Here, you’ll come to a T-junction to start your loop. Usually, you can start from either direction, since this is a loop hike. Due to COVID-19 and social distancing, there is a sign there suggesting traffic to go in one direction. Please make sure to follow the signage. We went left to follow the flow of traffic.

This trail can get very busy on the weekends. We went early in the morning so we got most of the place to ourselves. Even though this trail is short, there is so much to explore here, especially if you love scrambling on rocks and boulders.

Hidden Valley Nature trail is very easy to follow. There are signs and rock markers along the trail to lead the way and also to help you learn about the history of the area as well as plant-life and wildlife here. Because of the Hidden Valley’s location, a unique habitat was created, featuring a wide variety of plants and animals not typically found together in other areas in the park. This was why in 1937, desert pioneer Bill Keys blasted an opening through the rock walls to create access for his cattle herds. This opening still remains Hidden Valley’s main entrance.

After passing through the open desert, the trail curves back to go between the rocky boulders. At this part, we spent a lot of time climbing up the boulders and enjoyed the view from the top. We met a few rock climbers here, practicing their skills. Rock scrambling is not for everyone and is not required to complete this trail. If you’re planning to climb up rocks and boulders, please be careful and know your limits.

The trail eventually curves right where you will pass a super cool dead tree on your right-hand side. Of course, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to take some photos with this tree.

After the tree, the trail leads into some cool valleys full of interesting rock formations and a few rock staircases. This part of the trail is really pretty, therefore, make sure you’ll spend some time here to explore the area. We wish we allotted more time for this trail. Once you’re done exploring the area, continue on the trail to the beginning of the Hidden Valley Nature trail loop. From here, follow the same short path to go back to the car.

If you’re up for something more challenging, the Chasm of Doom is a secret passageway that consists of twisted tunnels and caves hidden inside the boulders of Hidden Valley. It is NOT for the faint of heart. Also, don’t forget to check out Arch Rock trail, a short trail that will take you to a super cool natural rock arch and other neat rock formations. Cholla Cactus Garden is another stop we recommended. You don’t need to spend a lot of time, but it is pretty cool to see these unique Cholla Cactus. This place is especially beautiful early morning or at sunset.

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RECOMMEND GEAR:

These are the gear that we personally use and find helpful for this particular adventure. Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.

The majority of these links are through our affiliate links so if you buy something, it is at no extra cost for you but it helps us support the site. That being said, don’t buy something just to support us, buy something if you think it will enhance your travels and adventures.

• Hiking shoes
You’ll want to go rock scrambling here. Make sure to wear good shoes with tractions. Vy’s shoes are Merrell Women’s Moab 2 Mid Waterproof Hiking Boot. Dustin’s shoes are TARGHEE III WATERPROOF.

• Snacks/Lunch
Always bring snacks with you! This trail has some beautiful areas for a quick lunch too!

• Sunscreen
Bring sunscreen! We use eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen, All Good Organic Sunscreen Butter – Zinc Oxide – Coral Reef Safe, and All Good Sport Sunscreen Lotion – Coral Reef Safe (3 oz)(2-Pack) or Stream2Sea SPF 30 Reef Safe Sport Tinted Sunscreen.

• Water
Doesn’t matter when you go, always make sure to bring plenty of water. Especially if you go in the afternoon. Bring extra because you have to hike in to start this trail. Vy uses the Camelback L.U.X.E. Dustin uses the Clik Small pack (sadly Clik is no longer around). Patagonia Women’s Nine Trails Pack 18L is also a great backpack for a shorter hike like this.