3 Generation Family Trip to Palm Springs, February 2026
My wife and I have offered our son and daughter to take their families on a trip. It's basically an open invitation. We'll negotiate the specifics of when and where. But we want to take them where they want to go.
Our daughter was the first to take us up. So for Presidents Day weekend this year, we flew to Palm Springs for a long weekend. The plan was to get away from the Minnesota cold and do a bunch of hiking. My wife and I are in our 70s. Our daughter and her husband are in their 40s, and the grandchildren are teenagers.
For lodging, we opted for an Air Bnb. In case you don't know, vacation rentals in Palm Springs can be tricky, and short term rentals present a challenge. (As you might expect, a lot of vacation rentals in the area are aimed at snowbirds who want to stay for several weeks.) We ended up picking a house in Thousand Palms. It was well maintained, not large but roomy enough for our family. It had 3 bedrooms; my wife and I claimed the master suite.
Most critically, the house had a nice modern kitchen and a beautiful yard with a pool, spa, fire pit, a really cool grill and outdoor kitchen, and plenty of seating. Some of the outdoor seating was sheltered with a roof, presumably to provide shade from the sun. But we actually had some rain and the roof provided shelter so we could still be outside.
Some of our friends questioned our choice because it's not particularly close to the center of action, i.e. downtown Palm Springs or Rancho Mirage or Cathedral City. But this location suited us well for our planned activities.
Our main goal was hiking, and we had 4 really fun hikes. For transportation, we rented a Dodge Durango. It was big enough for the 6 of us and it got us around the area comfortably.
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| South Lykken Trail |
Fortunately for us, the trailhead for the South Lykken Trail was immediately adjacent to the parking lot for Tahquitz Canyon. We didn't know too much about the trail, but rather than wait, we took off up the trail. This is a fairly long trail (4.4 miles one way) with a significant elevation gain (1000 feet). My wife and I went a mile and then turned back. The rest of the family continued for another mile or so and then rejoined us.
Then it was back to the house for lunch and swimming.
Around mid afternoon, we piled back into our rental vehicle for a short drive to Thousand Palms Oasis. The hike itself was short, only about 2 miles, and not at all challenging. Three things made it worth visiting.
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| Thousand Palms Oasis |
1. It's right on the San Andreas Fault. There's a sign that marks the spot, and the trail runs along the faultline.
2. We didn't count them, but I can easily believe that there are 1000 California fan palms at the oasis. Along the hike, you can ascend a small hill. The view over the oasis is impressive for all the palm trees clustered there.
3. The attendant on duty was very interesting to talk to. He is Native American. He seems to live there in a log house that's not open to the public. And he has some great stories about his life.
Then it was back to the house for more swimming and dinner. Our daughter's husband is a chef. I thought he'd want a break from cooking. But he said he wanted to prepare the meals for us, and he was particularly eager to use the outdoor kitchen.
The next day, we planned to go to Joshua Tree National Park. We had done a lot of research trying to decide on which hike to take in the park. We settled on 49 Palms Oasis trail. The trailhead is fairly remote; it took us about an hour to drive there. The park website says this is a 3-mile, out and back hike (my Fitbit measured it as slightly longer than that) with a 300-foot elevation gain going both ways. It's considered a 'strenuous' hike. But the grandparents (i.e. us) managed just fine.
This was a very enjoyable hike. There were lots of rocks for the grandkids and elders to scramble over. Even though it still was the holiday weekend, it wasn't too crowded. The oasis at the end of the trail was nice. There were a lot of flat rocks and places for us to have a picnic lunch before following the trail back out.
The only thing missing ... no Joshua trees! On our drive to the trailhead, we saw lots of them from the road. But along the trail itself was mostly scrub bushes, cacti, and fan palms at the oasis.
After the hike, we had a quiet drive back to the house for swimming and that evening, we went into Palm Springs for sushi dinner.
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| Me, my son-in-law and grandkids |
For our final day of family hiking, we were confronted by a forecast for rain. So we made an early start, hoping we'd be able to finish the hike before bad weather arrived. For this hike, we went to the Murray Canyon trail in the Indian Canyons. This was a 3.7 mile, out and back hike with 500 foot elevation gain. The trail ends at an oasis with the Seven Sisters Waterfall. Along the main trail, there's an optional side route that up above the canyon with lots of opportunities for rock scrambling. Of course, that's the route we took. (For the hike back to the trailhead, we stayed on the main trail that goes along the canyon floor.)
After the hike, we went back to the house for lunch, and in the afternoon, it did start to rain. That didn't keep the younger family members from enjoying the pool and spa. And in the evening, it was back downtown for shopping and dinner at a Mexican restaurant.
The next morning dawned bright and clear and chilly ... and there was snow in the mountains. After breakfast and packing up, we brought our daughter's family to the airport. We turned in the Dodge Durango in exchange for a Nissan Sentra, as my wife and I planned to stay on for some more hiking and to visit friends who have relocated to the Palm Springs area.
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| In Joshua Tree, with snow in the distance |
Before going to visit them, we made a return trip to Joshua Tree. This time, we took the High View Nature Trail. The trailhead actually was not easy to find. We parked near the Black Rock Nature Center then followed a road that seemed like a service road until we came to another parking area at the trailhead. This was a 2-mile, moderate hike with 400 feet of elevation gain. The trail passes by many of the iconic Joshua trees, and then goes up a ridge with a panoramic view of this part of the national park. It was chilly, and very windy with views of snow-capped mountains in the distance.
In total, this was a very enjoyable family vacation, one that I hope created good memories for our grandchildren.
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| Joshua Tree |
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