KEEPING JOSHUA TREE WEIRD IN BOOM TIMES
AN INFLUX OF PEOPLE IS GREAT FOR BUSINESS IN TOWNS NEAR THE NATIONAL PARK. BUT HOW TO AVOID BECOMING ‘THE NEXT TULUM’?
THE SUN was low, the cactus shadows were lengthening and laughter rang out amid the Airstreams. Natalie Valdez, 36, and Clarence Tsay, 37, who last year got engaged at Joshua Tree National Park, had returned with a gaggle of friends from Los Angeles, San Francisco and beyond. Now they filled four tricked-out trailers in the AutoCamp resort, one of many shiny new enterprises in this ever-more-fashionable corner of the desert. ¶ “I love Joshua Tree — its weirdness, its hippiness. I don’t want it to become commercial,” Valdez said. ¶ “We don’t want it to become Tulum,” Tsay said, referring to the Mexican beach town that became an Instagram darling, attracted legions of upscale tourists and now struggles with overwhelmed infrastructure.
When a naturally beautiful destination starts getting too popular and luxuryoriented, he said, “There’s a fine line.”
Then their friend Hana Cho piped up.
“That’s the only reason I’m here — because there was a luxury option!” she said.
Actually, there are many.
In fact, as more and more people arrive in the towns along Highway 62 near Joshua
Tree National Park, those visitors and newcomers are spending freely on everything from neo-bohemian lodgings to vintage goods. In their eagerness to feel those desert vibes, they’ve set off a full-blown boom.
As first-timers quickly learn, hotels are few and far between but vacation rentals are just about everywhere.
For $3,460 per night, you can book “the Invisible House,” a mirror-walled home with a pool. For $450 to $800 per night, reserve a spring or fall stay in the A-Z West compound designed by artist Andrea Zittel. For $300? Maybe a yurt with Mongolian furniture.
When your retail adventures begin, Ricochet Wears (Joshua Tree) stands ready with old cowboy boots. Chasing an old Tom Waits album? White Label Vinyl in Twentynine Palms wants to help. Need a $3,000 fine-art print or a $16 bar of soap? Consult Mojave Flea Trading Post (which has stores in Yucca Valley and Palm Springs).
Afterward, sink into an hourlong soundbath with 27 new friends amid the crystal “singing bowls” of the domed Integratron in Landers. (No water, no soap, $50 per person, reservations a must.)
This burst of commerce and creativity follows the highway for 32 miles west to east through the Morongo Basin area, through the varied and formerly sleepy communities of Morongo Valley (population about 3,090), Yucca Valley (pop. 21,738), Joshua Tree (pop. 6,489) and Twentynine Palms (pop. 28,065). Pioneertown, about six miles north of Yucca Valley, is part of the same surge.
Joshua Tree National Park registered a record 3.06 million visitors in 2021, up 50% since 2015.
“The pandemic definitely created what I would call a tipping point,” said artist Eric Nash, who moved from Palm Springs to Yucca Valley seven years ago. “Every day I’ll
read or hear about a new business ... the kinds of things you can’t do in L.A. or San Diego or Palm Springs for that matter.”
Meanwhile, many businesses that predate the pandemic are seeing more customers than ever before. In Yucca Valley, for instance, sales tax revenues have doubled since 2017.
“Anybody who owns a business in Joshua Tree is currently walking around in a dream state. It’s so busy,” said Jeff Haf ler, 49, owner of the Beauty Bubble Salon and Museum in Joshua Tree.
“Those Airbnb people want something to do,” said Steve Halterman, co-owner of the Station, a 1940s former gas station now filled with souvenir T-shirts, mugs, posters and pottery.
Though much of the area’s new tourism — both part-time and full-time occupancy — comes from Los Angeles, 120 miles west, another portion comes from nearby Palm Springs, where Midcentury Modernism is practically a way of life.
Now picture that style in conversation with the cosmic-cowboy sensibility that reached the high desert with rock star
Gram Parsons (and his embroidered bellbottoms) in the 1970s. Factor in thousands of tousled J-Tree rock climbers and boulderers, along with legions of party people drawn by the nearby Coachella musical festival (which will return in April after a two-year absence). Then consider that registered Republicans continue to outnumber Democrats in Yucca Valley and Twentynine Palms.
That’s the unique jumble you see now along the highway: Stetsons and Jetsons, rustic cabins and Airstream trailers, the occasional gay pride f lag, the occasional Trump bumper sticker.
But with so many changes afoot and L.A. gas prices edging past $5 a gallon, how long will this surge last?
IT’S THE DESERT, SO THERE ARE THORNY QUESTIONS
Traffic might be the most obvious complication of this boom. Even before the pan
[See Boom, L6]
Hoof and the Horn Inspired by Joshua Tree, this retail space offers new and vintage clothing for men and women, Joshua Tree T-shirts, stickers and prints, bandannas and scarves, western wear and hats. 55840 Twentynine Palms Highway, hoofandthe horn.com, @hoofandthe horn
Mojave Flea Trading Post
Shop for clothing, accessories and home goods made by designers from the Yucca Valley (All Roads Studio, Bob Dornberger), Joshua Tree (Totally Blown), Los Angeles (RTH) and Northern California (Tumbleweed Tienda, Umber & Ochre) in this 10,000-square-foot marketplace.
55727 Twentynine Palms Highway, shoptrading post.com, @mojave flea.yuccavalley
Moon Wind Trading Co.
Mieka May and Prescott McCarthy’s desert lifestyle boutique in Flamingo Heights is heavy on sustainable goods including vintage and new apparel, jewelry, home accessories and apothecary items.
1141B Old Woman Springs Road, moonwindtrading co.com, @moonwind tradingco
ZZIEE Ceramics
Yucca Valley potter and ceramic artist Elizabeth Eisenstein sells her handthrown and -built mugs, bowls, vases and planters in a showroom next to her studio, where she offers private and group classes. 56155 Twentynine Palms Highway, Suite A, zzieeceramics.com, @zzieeceramics
JOSHUA TREE Art Queen
Artist Shari Elf sells $3 and $10 screen-printed artworks and T-shirts with funny captions like “Make Orwell Fiction Again” at Art Queen, near her World Famous Crochet Museum.
61855 Twentynine Palms Highway, sharielf.com, @worldfamouscrochet museum
The Beauty Bubble Salon and Museum
Jeff Hafler’s salon and museum of hair and beauty has “probably the world’s largest collection of of hair dryers,” dating to 1908, and sells vintage items, rocks and crystals. 61855 Twentynine Palms Highway, beautybubble .net, @beautybubblesalon
Coyote Corner
The Joshua Tree National Park gift shop offers everything you need for a weekend getaway including camping necessities, maps, retro games for kids, snacks and cheeky bumper stickers like “I Brake for Interesting
[See Shopping, L6]
[Shopping, from L5]
Cloud Formations.” 6535 Park Blvd. at Highway 62, jtcoyotecorner .com, @coyotecorner
Grateful Desert Apothecary
This worker-run neighborhood apothecary offers herb tinctures by owner Jenny Qaqundah, a licensed RN who has studied therapeutic herbalism, plus an aroma bar with more than 100 essential oils and other natural products.
61607 Twentynine Palms Highway, Suite A, grate fuldesert.com, @grate fuldesert.joshuatree
Industry of All Nations Undyed shop
Juan Diego and Fernando Gerscovich’s sustainable fashion brandoffers unisex super-soft undyed alpaca wool beanies and cardigans and cotton T-shirts in a minimalist showroom.
61675 Twentynine Palms Highway, Unit 1, industry ofallnations.com, @industryofallnations
Joshua Tree Blanket Co.
In addition to Mexican handmade blankets and ponchos that will keep you warm on those cold desert nights, this boutique offers leather goods and vintage cowboy boots. Don’t miss the discount bins out front. 61865 Twentynine Palms Highway, joshuatree blanketco.com, @joshua treeblanketco
Joshua Tree Rock Shop Jampacked with rocks, crystals and minerals, this shop also offers handmade jewelry, books on tarot and crystals, crystal singing bowls and Himalayan salt lamps. 61595 Twentynine Palms Highway, joshuatree rock-shop.com, @joshua treerockshop
Ricochet Vintage Wears
The longtime vintage store sells clothing, vintage cowboy boots and western wear, jewelry, CDs and home decor. 61731 Twentynine Palms Highway, ricochetjoshua tree.com, @ricochet vintagewears
The Station
Shop for gifts in a 1949 Richfield Oil garage restored by owners Glen Steigelman and Steve Halterman, including blankets and ponchos, Joshua Tree T-shirts, pottery by local artists and some vintage.
61943 Twentynine Palms Highway, thestation joshuatree.com, @thestationjoshuatree
TWENTYNINE PALMS Habitat
Blanca Bribiesca’s home store features locally made items, furnishings, pillows and candles. 73519 Twentynine Palms Highway, Suite B, shophabitat29.com, @shophabitat29
Hi-Desert Daydream
At the co-op style collective, the focus is on local makers selling everything from candles to clothing, olive oil to artworks. 73515 Twentynine Palms Highway, Suite B, hidesertdaydream.com, @hidesertdaydream