How to Hike Barker Dam Trail in Joshua Tree NP

Despite being a short and easy trail, Barker Dam is nonetheless a fun and beautiful place to visit, especially when it is full of water. Barker Dam Nature Trail loops past the lake and the dam, providing all the main features of Joshua Tree Nation Park – enormous boulders, historic sites, iconic Joshua trees, petroglyphs, and calming water (if you visit during the right season). It is the only hike in the park that you can see the vast amount of water in the middle of a desert. Even during the dry season, it is still gorgeous and pretty fun to explore the dry lake bed.

STATS:

Where:

Barker Dam Loop Trail
Coords: 34°01’30.4″N 116°08’31.1″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:

1.3 miles loop

Elevation Gain:

62 ft

Level:

Easy

Estimated Completion Time:

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

Ideal Weather:

This trail is doable year-round. However, Spring is the best season to visit. Summer is the worst as it gets VERY hot here.

If you want to see water in the dam, go late Winter or Spring. Make sure there are a few good rainy days before you go. The water dry up during Summer and Fall.

Ideal Time:

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

Accessibily:

Barker Dam is not wheel-chair or stroller accessible. There is a short rock scrambling area and minor climbing through narrow passages along the way.

Dog-friendly:

Dogs are not allow on trails at the park.

Weather:

Video:

THE ADVENTURE:

Getting There

Barker Dam trailhead is just down the street from Hidden Valley Nature Trail, which is another good short hike. Barker Dam Trail is located closer to the Twentynine Palms entrance (instead of Cottonwood entrance). If you’re coming from Skull Rock, follow Park Boulevard to Barker Dam Road. Turn right onto Barker Dam Road. Barker Dam Nature Trail parking lot is on the left, about 2 miles in. There should be signs to point you to the right way.

The Start of the Hike

The trailhead for Barker Dam trail is located in the back of the parking lot, next to the vault toilets. The trail started with a short, fenced walkway, leading to a sandy trail lined with the iconic Joshua trees and big boulders. Don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled for Big Horn Sheep. We haven’t seen them yet, but they are known to frequent this area.

About 0.15 miles, you’ll come to an obvious junction. This is where your loop starts. You can go either direction. If you go left (clockwise), you’ll reach to Petroglyph rock first then the Dam. If you go right (counter-clockwise), you’ll get to the Dam first. We opted to go left (clockwise).

To the Petroglyphs

From the junction, after about 0.25 miles, you’ll reach a short stem trail to a small cave that has the ancient Cahuilla petroglyphs and pictographs. Most of these petroglyphs are of geometric shapes and stick figures. When we visited this cave, we noticed that a lot of these petroglyphs look like they had been painted over. Many of them appear bold, colorful and unnatural. We had no idea that in 1961, a Walt Disney film crew decided to paint over some of them so they would be more visible in the movie “Chico, the Misunderstood Coyote”. This is what we call vandalism nowadays.

To the Dam:

After spending your time at the Petroglyphs, follow the signs to get back on Barker Dam trail. Luckily, this trail is well-marked, so you won’t get lost. This part of the trail is quite beautiful. The sandy trail winds through an open desert full of Joshua trees and large boulders. We took some time to wander off trail, toward the boulders and the mountain on left. It is such a beautiful place!

About 0.31 miles from the Petroglyphs Cave, you’ll reach the rocky part of the trail. The trail snakes around the big boulders and leads you over the top of the dam on the left. There’s a couple small caves along the way here as well.

Depending on when you go, you can either see a small blue lake or a dry lake bed. Either way, you can tell that you reach the dam by the big concrete wall and the natural water tank on the left side of the trail.

The concrete wall on the left side is the dam

Exploring the Barker Dam Area

In early 1900s, in an effort to collect and preserve the rare water for their stocks, ranchers searched ways to supplement natural water sources. Barker Dam started out as a natural tank, a catch basin for rainfall and runoff. Eventually, it was expanded into a dam by the Barker & Shay Cattle Company. The dam later was enlarged by Bill Keys, owner of the Desert Queen Ranch. Today, Barker Dam becomes a reminder of the past and still serves as a precious watering hole for desert animals and migrating birds.

When Barker Dam is full of water, it is quite breathtaking, especially during sunset. The calm water captures the reflection of the rock mounds and its surroundings perfectly.

Beautiful reflection when the dam is full of water. Photo by Frank Zhang

Barker Dam with some water. Photo by Nancy Reid

You can see the water line where the water used to be

During the dry season, this lake bed is quite fun to explore. We came here in November and the lake was bone dry. You can see the water line along the big boulders. We climbed our way down between the boulders to the lake bed and walked around the area, towards the back of the reservoir. It was fun scrambling around and exploring all the nooks and crannies in the boulders.

Once you’re done here, make your way back to the trail and complete your loop. This part of the trail winds through towering boulders. If you love scrambling, you’ll love this section of Barker Dam Trail. Don’t forget to look left for a super cool, dead tree that fell over on the big rock mounds. It is fun to climb on.

Since this is a short hike, you’ll have more time to check out other cool spots in Joshua Tree. Hidden Valley Nature Trail is another short and beautiful hike, just down the road from Barker Dam. 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 recommend. 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.