THE MAGICAL REMEDIES OF JOSHUA TREE
Why a 24-hour trip to Joshua Tree National Park is the perfect medicine for a heartbreak.
The first time I went to Joshua Tree was right after a breakup. The second time I went to Joshua Tree was right after a break up. The third time I went to Joshua Tree was right after a friend’s breakup. There are plenty of reasons to visit Joshua Tree National Park; however, I am here to explain how the desert, with some all-natural remedies, can get you through your heartbreak warfare.
When I was a kid, growing up in the Midwest, we went camping every year. The main part of each camping trip always revolved around water; we would float down a river, go bass fishing on a lake or trout fishing on a protected river, and sometimes we’d find a great swimming hole that had accessible cliff jumping or an available rope swing around the water. No matter what, the goal always seemed like we were to set up camp near a body of water.
Joshua Tree is not your typical park or campground; there is NO water. None. Zero. Why? Because it’s in a desert. Actually, it’s a combination of two different deserts, but you get the idea.
Two distinct desert ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado, come together in Joshua Tree National Park. It is is home to world-famous rock formations, funky Joshua trees, and a rich diversity of plants, animals, and human history. It is a land sculpted by strong winds and occasional torrents of rain. With stunning desert vistas and seemingly endless days of sunshine, the park attracts over three million visitors per year.1
Its namesake, the Joshua tree, or yucca brevifolia, is native to the Mojave Desert. I’m sure Bono would have no problem claiming that he made the Joshua tree popular; however, the name Joshua tree is commonly said to have been given by a group of Mormon settlers crossing the Mojave Desert in the mid-19th century. The tree's role in guiding them through the desert, combined with its unique shape, reminded them of a biblical story in which Joshua keeps his hands reached out for an extended period of time to enable the Israelites in their conquest of Canaan. Further, the shaggy leaves may have provided the appearance of a beard (Joshua 8:18–26). Ranchers and miners, who were contemporaneous with the Mormon immigrants, used the trunks and branches as fencing and for fuel for ore-processing steam engines. Anyway, biblical stories…Bono…same same, right?
Prior to the twentieth century, Native Americans of the Mojave and western Sonoran Desert routinely used several parts of the Joshua tree as food and fiber. Leaf fibers were occasionally used to bind and manufacture sandals. Root sheaths were woven into baskets to add reddish-brown designs. Fruits were baked or boiled then eaten. Seeds were ground into flour and mixed with flour from other plant species. The flour was moistened with water and the resulting paste was kneaded into cakes and dried.
Nowadays, it is illegal to do anything with a Joshua tree. Federal laws prohibit taking or damaging National Park wildlife and plants, and Joshua trees are also a protected species under state law.
WHAT TO BRING
First and foremost, when heading to Joshua Tree National Park, make sure to stop at the VONS in Yucca Valley to load up on supplies. Once in the park, there is nowhere to get anything, from what I understand, so LOAD UP.
Aside from there being no water, Joshua Tree is HOT…and cold. The last time we went it got up to 114 degrees outside, and then dropped to 78 degrees at night; a 36 degree drop is a huge change in temperature, so, even though it was 78 degrees outside, we had sweaters and pants on by the end of the night. You want to pack plenty of sunscreen, and I recommend buying more water than necessary; the water will also come in handy if you need to rinse yourself off from all of the daytime dirt, sweat, and sunscreen.
When deciding on what to have for dinner there are two options: buy some prepared food, or grill some meat/veggies on your designated fire-pit in the campsite. I have done both; however, one single experience (more on this later) made me realizing pre-made sandwiches and snacks are the way to go for multiple reasons.
WHERE TO CAMP
There are nine established campgrounds in Joshua Tree National Park, but I, along with everyone else I know, only reserve spots at Jumbo Rocks or Indian Cove. I feel as though both campgrounds have the best options when it comes to climbing and exploring the different areas of the park. The park, itself, is slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island; however, unlike a traditional park, there is a lot of open, barren land, so you want to make sure your campground is in close proximity to some trails and/or boulders for your afternoon adventures.
Pro tip: find a spot that has some large rocks providing some cover from the sun. As previously mentioned, the temperature will DROP at night, but the minute that sun hits your tent in the morning you will start to bake.
Additionally, you can opt to stay outside of the park, in Twentynine Palms or downtown Joshua Tree, but, in my opinion, that is a very different experience. The light pollution, although much better than L.A., is far worse outside of the park, and one of the best things about Joshua Tree National Park is the nighttime star gazing. Nowadays, one of the nice things about staying outside of the park is the availability of AirBnB’s with swimming pools and large, open back yards for a trip a little easier, and cozier, than tent camping inside the park. But, again, the only place I’ve seen a better night sky than Joshua Tree was outside of the United States — it truly is remarkable to see the stars dancing through a dark, naked sky.
WHAT TO DO
Hiking in Joshua Tree is fun and weird at the same time. On one hand, you get to climb boulders unlike anything near where you may live, but, on another hand, after a few hours, you kind of start to feel like you’ve done or seen it all.
Traditionally, I like to get to Joshua Tree in the afternoon, set up camp, go hiking for a few hours, and then get back to the campsite for some food and to experience that ridiculous JT sunset experience.
Additionally, some people like to go into town and have fun for the evening in one of its three closest cities: Pioneer Town, Twentynine Palms, and Joshua Tree/Yucca Valley. Some top attractions in the area included: the Noah Purifoy Outdoor Desert Art Museum, Joshua Tree Saloon, The Tiny Pony Tavern, and last, but certainly not least, Pappy + Harriet’s.
Pappy + Harriet’s is a Joshua Tree institution. As stated on their website, P+H’s is all about “BBQ, Bands, Bikers, Booze, Boots, Music, Mezcal, Families, Friends, and Vets Together at One Magical Desert Roadhouse.” Although it is, indeed, a restaurant, P+H’s is an artistic and cultural institution featuring an eclectic mix of performers over the years: Paul McCartney, Lizzo, Orville Peck, Patti Smith, Taking Back Sunday, Lucinda Williams, Arctic Monkeys, Everclear, Coheed and Cambria, Interpol, Pretenders, and many, many more. It can get lively and loud, and you will see families, hippies, and bikers all mixed in one; whether you know the performer, or not, it’s always worth a trip, if you’re in the area.
MAGIC TIME
Okay, time to get to the good stuff…
Remember, at the beginning of the article, when we were talking about natural remedies curing your heartbreak warfare? Well, obviously I was talking about the potent concoction of two things: the desert, and magic mushrooms. The magic of Joshua Tree truly comes out during Sunset and the transition to that beautiful night sky, BUT, if you want to dig deeper into the meaning life and other great mysteries, I recommend adding in psilocybin, aka magic mushrooms.
I’m not here to lecture or give a course on mushrooms—I’m a novice, at best—but if you’re curious about the world of mushrooms, and other medicinal plants, I recommend checking out anything and everything from Michael Pollan. Pollan is concurrently a professor at Harvard and UC Berkley, and his books, How to Change Your Mind and This is Your Mind On Plants, are both great places to start.
Personally, had my heart not been shattered into a million pieces (to be a bit dramatic) I’m not sure if I would have ever gone on a mushroom trip. My good buddy, the tall drink of water pictured in the opening photo, convinced me to broaden my horizons and have an experience, along with him and a few others, out in the desert. I was such a mess of a human being, who needed some guidance and questions answered, that I was willing to do anything; so, I was in. We loaded up on supplies, hiked during the day, and made it back to camp to take our mushrooms. I honestly had no idea what to expect, but after about 30 minutes, or so, a laughing exchange started to take hold of the entire group and then I’m not quite sure when it stopped. It felt as though someone slit my tear ducts open and tears of laughter just came pouring out at an alarming rate; I hadn’t laughed that hard in quite some time, and laughing is always a good cure for a wounded heart.
We sat and watched as the sky changed colors from blue, to yellow, to orange, to purple, and finally fading to black with many, many bright shining stars. After a moment, I couldn’t stop focusing in the stars and, out of nowhere, they started to form together like the green code from The Matrix. I. Was. Done. I went from never-ending belly laughs to complete silence as we all were sucked into the universe, one exploding star at a time. I felt as though I could see further than I ever have before, and it quickly made me realize how small I am, in the universe, and that my “problems”, albeit feeling big to me, were actually a tiny speck of a speck of a speck in this deep, never-ending universe of ours. In the grand scheme of things we really are just a blip in the equation. We blow up our daily lives, just like how a film projector lights up a giant movie screen, standing tall and wide, and we make ourselves believe that, at least for a moment, WE are all that matter. Is it ego? Is it narcissism? I’m not quite sure; I think it’s very easy to get caught up in the game called “life”.
Breaking up with someone you shared a personal part of your life with…fucking sucks. Getting your heart broken, or breaking someone else’s heart, is the absolute worst feeling in the world. We turn into children, once again, and we are made to feel as though everything we did was meaningless and all of that “quality time” we set aside for someone else was wasted. A trip in the desert will certainly help you realize that there are things we need to learn from every experience. I don’t wish a heartbreak on anyone, but I swear I have come out of each and every single one a better, stronger person. Learn from your mistakes—I know, for me, they were definitely almost all MY mistakes—pick yourself back up, and carry on.
Mushrooms, for me, amongst many other things, make me SLOW down, connect with myself, connect with my surroundings, and it helps me realize that sometimes we just need to stop, reset, and take it all in.
For the record, I want it to be known that, when on shrooms, you do NOT lose control or your ability to function. In fact, I would argue it opens you up to a world that you’ve never realized is sitting right in front of you.
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while…you could miss it.” — Ferris Bueller
Since my first “trip”, the sheep hath become the sherpa and I have taken people out to the desert, more than once, to participate in the eye-opening experience that heavily features self-reflection, patience, compassion, honesty (a big one, for me), and gratitude.
Each time, the trip has lasted close to midnight, and as you’re coming down you still get to go to bed with the stars twinkling slightly more than they normally would. Additionally, your shitty sleep situation on hard, rocky ground, in a tent, seems meaningless…until the next morning, of course.
If nothing else, I try and have one of these euphoric experience’s once a year, so I can reground the airplane, so to speak. During a trip, you feel like you’re soaring into another dimension only to be placed gracefully back in the ordinary place you started; in other words, you have to leave to come back. Additionally, it sure is one hell of a group experience. There’s nothing quite like enjoying Mother Nature, while indulging in Mother Nature, with a group of people you are grateful to call your friends.
I’ll end with a fun story…
Remember when I said pre-made food vs. cooking food was the way to go? Here’s why:
On my first desert experience, explained above, we decided to load up on some high end steaks, fish, and burgers to throw on the grill at the end of the day. We all had a great hike, and it was hot as hell, so we were hungry. Unfortunately, we made the mistake of taking the mushrooms BEFORE we started to cook all of the delicious food…which was a terrible idea. First, I would definitely recommend having something in your stomach BEFORE you take some magic mushrooms; second, you will start to cook your food and you will very quickly lose the ability to finish cooking as the euphoria sets in and forces you to take a seat as you let it all happen. The latter had happened to us, and a few hours later we were hungry and realized we had hockey pucks in the shapes of burgers and steaks on the grill. Needless to say, our $250 grocery store run turned into chips, pretzels, and burger buns for dinner. Moral of the story: eat before or during your mushroom consumption.