Joshua Tree is a spiritual place. Here, ancient granite boulders, forged by volcanic heat and smoothed by millennia of erosion, protrude into the desert sky. Otherworldly forms of cholla cacti and Joshua Trees accent a landscape that is both foreboding and inviting all at once. Here, one can walk almost anywhere, as long as you avoid the clinging spines of the cholla, for nothing stands between one point on the map and another but an expanse of parched ground and rocks. But, it is also a place of severe adaptations, an ecosystem where life comes in armor, armed with barbaric weapons to survive the desert’s unforgiving conditions. Joshua Tree is a place of unique beauty, a place where one feels deeply connected to nature and our planet.
This departure into the desert night would be Backcountry Journey’s inaugural Joshua Tree Night Skies trip, and a rare opportunity for myself and six amazing clients to photograph this unique and alien landscape by starlight.