A slower starting morning after the Spaghetti Western dinner and entertainment. Today was mostly planned as an eastern park visit.
We wanted to take a closer look at the Pinto Gneiss which is the more than 1.8-billion-year-old basement rock found at various locations throughout Joshua Tree NP and in many locations throughout SoCal. It is a metamorphic rock, so it has undergone changes starting out life as a sedimentary rock. It then was subjected to stresses including pressure, heat and chemical changes as it migrated from its deposition location to deep beneath the surface of the earth (20-30 km down) and subjected to temperatures of from 600-750 deg Celsius (around 1,200 deg Fahrenheit)
Our second stop, Arch Rock, is one of our favorite short hikes/walks at Joshua Tree. A very low key, almost flat walk on a maintained trail until you get into the rocks. Then it’s like you’re a kid all over again wanting to climb rocks, hollering to your wife “Hey, I’m up here”. Telling your wife to be careful and don’t slip or fall. Always a great experience, and the geology!! What it lacks in petrologic diversity (Monzogranite of Whites Tank – somewhere around 140 +/- 30 million years old), it makes up for in its weathering and erosional expression. First stop is Heart Rock and then on to Arch Rock.
Finally, lunch and a beer at the closest picnic area. It was a somewhat crowded day in the park since it was a Saturday, and the weather was pretty nice. It is clear that some families pack up all the kids and relatives (probably in one car to minimize entry fees with the beer, music, food, chairs and soft drinks in the pickup behind) and head up to the park for a day away from home.
Got back to the Airbnb and a brownie was created. A very nice pizza for dinner and then a trip to the Dollar Tree in Joshua Tree to get some ice cream for the brownie.
All in all, it was a great way to start out the 70th trip around the sun!