Le Blog.

#10 This may seem rather obvious, but there isn’t a convenient/close place to get firewood or any other type of supplies in the park so be sure to stock up on everything you need before you enter. (Water, propane, batteries and wood usually tend to go fast so pack more than you think you’ll need.) #9 Layer, layer layer! The best time to visit Joshua Tree is during the winter months and temperatures then tend to plummet suddenly! Pack for temps in the 30’s and very high winds. At certain points I had on three long-sleeved tops, a jacket, two pairs of socks, two pairs of pants and was wrapped up in blankets while sitting fireside. Seriously, pack for Antarctica. #8 There’s little to no cell phone reception anywhere in the park so you may want to think about getting walkie-talkies, especially if you plan on separating for a solo hike. Let’s try to avoid any repeats of 127 Hours, mmm’kay?! #7 A word of caution, if you’re bringing small pets be very, very careful and leash ’em an hour or two before dusk (if not at all times). We had a coyote come right up to our site while we were sitting around the campfire! We also had an adorable bunny and several teeny, tiny chipmunks. #6 If you plan on visiting Joshua Tree more than once in 365 days opt for the year pass at the visitor’s center for $40 instead of the $25 day pass at the park entrance. #5 …..while you’re there ask the ranger for a map. It will be invaluable! Also pick their brain on any cool tours or events in the park for the time you’re there. #4 Joshua Tree is at it’s most beautiful when the Milky Way galaxy is visible above the horizon. You’ll have to go between February and October to catch a glimpse. (It will blow your mind!) #3 Try to plan your trip around a new moon. You will be in awe of how many more stars appear when that big ‘ole ball of light isn’t trying to take center stage. #2. All of the first come, first serve campgrounds will have a FULL sign out front. Drive through anyway. Always. #1 Since nobody wants to camp in the desert in the middle of summer when it’s 120 degrees outside the colder months are when Joshua Tree really heats up in terms of visitors! There are only a few campgrounds that offer reservations, you’re best bet is to plan early enough to make one and then once you arrive drive through the park to see if you can find a better spot at one of the first come, first serve sites. If you do though, be sure to pay it forward. Once your new site is secured, call and cancel your existing reservation so someone else can snag it. (Otherwise people like me end up sleeping in a parking lot outside the park even though there are empty sites available.) Be sure to check out Part I and Part II of my photo diary to this majestic desert! Also learn How I Found the Best Campsite in Joshua Tree so you can avoid sleeping in a parking lot like I did, I mean, unless that’s your thing. And then, by all means… Follow my journey on Instagram @lindseyfoard!

I’ll be honest, we were not fully prepared for how busy the park would be. With over 500 campsites to choose from, I didn’t think we’d run into any trouble getting one. I was wrong, every site was taken. Like every single one. So we had to resort to plan B (we didn’t have a plan B) which meant that we had to set up camp in a glorified parking lot outside of Joshua Tree for the first night. (All the airbnb’s were full too, we checked and then checked again.) We made the best of it with a yummy dinner and drinks around the campfire but fulfill our expectations it did not. SO, the next morning we quickly packed up camp and got our butts back to the park early so we could snag a site. As we were driving through the Jumbo Rocks campground we got out of the car to check out a few spots that were open when a man who was hiking nearby yelled out to us “Get that site, it’s the best one in the park”! And that’s how we discovered #79, the best campsite in all of Joshua Tree. The site is completely private, you can’t see or hear any other campsites. (Although, you do get a few people walking through as there are trails and amazing hikes behind it. We didn’t have any problems though, everyone was super cool!) The desert doesn’t care who you are, and neither does anyone or anything who lives in it. -Deanne Stillman We had the best time hiking and exploring our new terrain. It was like having our own, private extraterrestrial playground. Though, when you’re surrounded by such a strange assortment of plants and enormous rock formations like that it really does make you feel like you’re on another planet. It kind of messes with your sense of reality, in a detached-feeling sort of way. Like home could be light years away. It’s a very odd sensation; I guess its part of the beauty of Joshua Tree. That night we knew the sky was going to put on a show and we wanted front row seats. So we filled my backpack chairs with libations and extra layers of clothing, grabbed the Farkle (a rad dice game) and hiked up one of the many rocky outcrops behind our site. We settled at the top of the world, busted out the dice and some M83 while we watched the sun slowly sink below the horizon. Without getting too deep here, being out in the middle of nowhere under the open sky like that procures a certain lightness of spirit. You let go of pretenses you didn’t know you held onto and a feeling of tranquility washes over you that is hard to come by living in the city, especially one as busy as Los Angeles. It turned out to be a wildly magical evening, one I won’t soon forget. Be sure to check out Part I and Part II of my photo diary to this majestic desert and 10 Things You Should Know Before You Go Camping in Joshua Tree. Follow my journey on Instagram @lindseyfoard and be sure to tag me if you go to Joshua Tree, especially if you luck out and snag campsite #79.

SaveSave SaveSave SaveSaveSaveSave Be sure to check out Part I of my photo diary to this majestic desert and 10 Things to Know Before Camping in Joshua Tree!  Also, learn How I Found the Best Campsite in Joshua Tree so you can avoid sleeping in a parking lot like I did, I mean, unless that’s your thing. And then, by all means… Follow my journey on Instagram @lindseyfoard!

SaveSave SaveSave SaveSaveSaveSave Be sure to check out Part II of my photo diary to this majestic desert and 10 Things to Know Before Camping in Joshua Tree! Also learn How I Found the Best Campsite in Joshua Tree so you can avoid sleeping in a parking lot like I did, I mean, unless that’s your thing. And then, by all means… Follow my journey on Instagram @lindseyfoard!

I’m embarrassed to admit that after living in this city for 11+ years I’ve barely set foot in the concrete enigma that is Downtown LA. Why you ask? Mostly because of her tricky one-ways, the wafting smell of urine and the dark alleys where obviously there lurks a monster of one kind or another. For me, DTLA was the shadowy place the light didn’t touch and so I heeded Mustafa’s advice and steered clear whenever possible. But honestly 10 years ago she was unattractive. After decades of abuse and neglect the beautiful art deco facades of downtown began to crumble and slowly she became a shell of her former glamorous self when the well to do and celebrities flocked to her theaters, restaurants and hotels in the 1920’s and 30’s. I have wistfully poured over pictures and articles of that magical time in the city’s history. She was so spectacular! The reality however, the morose state of her disrepair always just bummed me out when I walked around the city. And so I would trek back up the 101 like the good little Valley Girl I am, leaving behind my dismal mood and an untold amount of unfulfilled adventures. But over the last few years I’ve witnessed a visible difference, a major revolution. Every time I visit there’s new construction being done or renovations completed or a grand opening for whatever new bar or restaurant has moved in. The change is incredible! This city is dusting off her flapper dress and rising again, albeit slowly, into the dazzling metropolis she once was. Think less of the 20’s glitz & glamour, though, and more urban vitality. There’s a new, contagious energy in DTLA that was missing before but that you can’t deny has taken over the city. I suppose I should give credit where credit is due. I have my fabulous friend Jacqueline to thank for my new adventurous relationship with Downtown. She, like me, is from Minnesota. When she told me she was moving out here and that she wanted to live downtown I was mortified! I thought, oh god, she’s going to hate it and move back immediately! But my words of hazard luckily did not pay off and she and her boyfriend Emmanuel moved there two summers ago. Because of Jax Downtown Los Angeles is not as much a concrete enigma to me anymore as she is an artsy, culinary jungle ripe with an unlimited amount of fun! I’m very much looking forward to getting to know her better…and soon. Rules for Visiting Downtown LA: #1. Go in off-traffic times or you’ll regret ever getting in the car at all. #2. Know where you’re going and where to park ahead of time. #3. On that note, bring cash for parking, as most of the lots don’t accept debit cards. #4. Go hungry. The food options down there are plentiful and worth the drive alone. #5. Finally, and this one is really important, those aren’t homeless people, they’re hipsters. Apparently there’s a difference. SaveSave