Yucca Valley & Joshua Tree - A Californian Summer - Part Nine

The Joshua tree only grows wild in this one area of the Mojave desert, The Joshua Tree National Park. It’s known for its wild scorched landscape, gnarly looking Joshua trees and acres of isolation, attracting bohemian travellers for solace and tourists to visit the sprawling open plains, the Park offers. We booked an Airbnb in the Flamingo Heights area of Yucca Valley for two nights. The place offered everything you can imagine with a back drop that had to be seen to be believed. The desert is hot. We stopped at a supermarket for supplies on the way through, being cautious not to buy frozen items that would melt by the time we arrived. A keyless entry to an oasis of solitude and surrender.

The Rosy Boa had a container pool and airstream in the garden, acres of land surrounding it and a stylistic modern design. With the stillness of the area, the beauty and the sunsets you can only imagine how many artists, musicians, writers must come here for breathing space and creative inspiration. We ate, we swam, we kicked around the dust, ran through Joshua trees and nature hunted. We watched films, read, stayed in PJ’s all day and washed clothes. We arrived day 21 into our trip and it’s a relief to find you’ve built in places to rest and recharge. I’ll say it again - August in the desert is hot. There are a few things you can visit and see recommended to us, we just didn’t get there. Would I stay here again though? In a heartbeat. If you are looking for something as a complete antidote to the craziness of LA only 2-3 hours away. This is your place.

Where we stayed

The Rosy Boa via Airbnb - Yucca Valley, CA 92284, USA

We paid approximately £403 (currency conversion) per night and stayed for 2 nights.

What to do

Joshua Tree National Park - Find all the information you need to explore.

Pioneer Town - The main town area.

Iconic eateries of the area worth a visit include Pappy and Harriets and La Copine

Rosy Boa Airbnb in Joshua Tree National Park

Chalks take Cali

Rosy Boa Airbnb in Joshua Tree National Park

OJAI - A Californian Summer - Part five

What we saw of Ojai was a sweet small town with a parade of boutique shops, cafes and yoga studios to explore but the cream of the area had to be where we stayed at The Caravan Outpost. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt more like I’m living my best hippie life than here. Each accomodation is a vintage style airstream caravan, with additional central bathrooms, toilets and an uber cool shop and reception selling vintage clothes, accessories, homewares, books, magazines and snacks. No cowboy or girl would feel out of place but neither did we.

Visiting Caravan Outpost is like joining a family you never knew existed. It’s a place to unwind and connect with nature, music and a simpler life. We met families, couples and friends travelling through all wanting something different, not just a room to bed for the night.
The community consists of 11 airstreams caravans and some magical staff, good vibes, a never ending supply of s’mores which literally made our enitre evening. We ended up playing games like cornhole set up in the central area , ordering pizza from their local delivery and then everyone staying seemed to make a beeline for the fire pits for connecting and chatting with their new neighbours. The night we were there we got amazing tips for visiting LA and Palm springs, plus stories and adventures of places not on our list that trip we’d definitely come back for. We were the only Brits but we loved meeting likeminded Americans travelling through with their own roadtrips and adventures. Each of the named airstreams features record players, books & magazines plus there’s free bikes to use to run the casual loop trail round the back of the park, where kids have their own lemonade stands on show. It’s not just a place to stay it’s a glimpse into another life.

Where we stayed - Caravan Outpost - 317 Bryant St. Ojai CA 93023. 11 airstreams are available sleeping up to a total of 46 guests if each are at capacity. Some even allow your dog to stay too.

Cost - $188 a night for each caravan sleeping up to 4 people. so we shared 3 between our group of 10. Plus we paid $20 for the use of the sofa bed. There are a couple of bigger ones available for larger groups of 5, but get in early to make sure they are available.