|
|
|
|
USA
Alabama - Birmingham Alabama - Gulf Coast Alaska - Anchorage Alaska - Cruising Alaska - Dog Mushing Arizona - Best of the West Arizona - Grand Canyon Arizona - Phoenix Arizona - Roots Rediscovered Arizona - Scottsdale Arizona – Tombstone Arkansas - Little Rock Arkansas - Natural State California - Anaheim California - Celebrity Cemeteries California - Cool Shopping California - Delta Gold California - Fisherman's Wharf California - Lake Tahoe California - Los Angeles California - Movie Magic California - Napa Valley California - Palm Springs California - Sacramento California - San Diego California - San Francisco California - San Francisco Alcatraz California - San Jose California - Shamu at Seaworld California - Sonoma California - Whalewatching California – Costa Mesa Colorado - Denver Colorado - Springs & Pikes Peak Connecticut - Mystic Country DC Washington - DC Reinvented DC Washington - Historic DC Delaware - First State Florida - Bok Sanctuary Florida - Dynamic Downtowns Florida - Fort Myers Florida - Ft. Lauderdale Florida - Ft. Lauderdale Adventure Florida - Gulf Islands Florida - Jacksonville Florida - Key West Florida - Key West Mix Florida - Lakeland Florida - Miami Florida - Duck Tours Florida - Miami Hotels Florida - Orlando Florida - Orlando for Adults Florida - Plant City Florida - Tampa Bay Florida - Tampa Busch Gardens Florida - Vacations for All Ages Georgia - Atlanta Georgia - Brunswick & Islands Georgia - Columbus Georgia - Savannah Hawaii - Big Island Hawaii - Honolulu Hawaii - Kauai Hawaii - Maui Hawaii - Maui's Lahaina Hawaii - Oahu Hawaii - The Islands Idaho - Boise Illinois - Chicago Illinois - Chicago Town Illinois - Route 66 Indiana - Indianapolis Indiana - National Treasures Iowa - Rich Landscape Kansas - Heart and Soul Kansas - Home on the Ranch Kansas - Trail to Abilene Kansas - Wichita Kentucky - Arts & Crafts Louisiana - Baton Rouge Louisiana - Houma Louisiana - New Orleans Louisiana - New Orleans Carnival Maine - Must See Maine - Outdoor Adventure Maryland - Annapolis/Anne Arundel Maryland - Baltimore Maryland - Road Travelled Massachusetts - Boston Massachusetts - North of Boston Michigan - Detroit Michigan - Lansing River Trail Minnesota - Minneapolis/St. Paul Minnesota - Waterfalls Minnesota - Wine Country Mississippi - Easy to Travel Missouri - Branson Missouri - History Touched Missouri - St. Louis Route 66 Montana - Big Sky Montana - Great Falls Nebraska - Family Fun Nevada - Casino Getaways Nevada - Las Vegas Nevada - Monied Vegas Nevada - Reno/Tahoe Nevada - State Parks Nevada - Time to Visit Vegas New Hampshire - Curious George New Hampshire - Outdoor Adventure New Hampshire - Summertime New Jersey - Atlantic City Beach New Jersey - Outdoors New Mexico - Albuquerque New Mexico - Away to Santa Fe New Mexico - Santa Fe New York - Amusement Parks New York - Cultural Treasures New York - New York City New York - State Parks New York - Waterfalls New York – Shuffle off to Buffalo North Carolina - Charlotte North Carolina - Motorsports North Carolina - Roanoke North Dakota - Legendary Adventure Ohio - Columbus Ohio - World of Discovery Oklahoma - Oklahoma City Oklahoma - Wild Side Oregon - Astoria Oregon - Cannon Beach Oregon - Central Oregon Coast Oregon - Lincoln City Oregon - Newport Oregon - Portland Oregon - Seaside Oregon - Tillamook Oregon - Toledo Oregon - Trails Pennsylvania - Brush Valley Pennsylvania - Philadelphia Pennsylvania - Quirky Penn Pennsylvania - Scenic Route 6 Rhode Island - Tiny Gem South Carolina - Charleston South Carolina - Myrtle Beach South Dakota - Great Faces Tennessee - All Seasons Tennessee - Memphis Tennessee - Nashville Tennessee - Regions Tennessee – Secret City Texas - Arts & Culture Texas - Beaches Texas - Christmas Bird Count Texas - Dallas Texas - El Paso Texas - Family Fun Texas - Fort Worth Texas - Forts Trail Texas - Houston Texas - Ranch Roundup Utah - Enduring Favorites Utah - Salt Lake City Vermont - Seasonal Virginia - Historic Triangle Virginia - Virginia Beach Washington - On Water Washington - Seattle West Virginia - Mountain State Wisconsin - Great Lakes Wisconsin - Milwaukee Wyoming - Dreams Unchanged |
USA - CALIFORNIA - PALM SPRINGS : GETTING INTO THE DESERT by Toni Dabbs   Before there were lush green golf courses, before there were irrigated date farms, before there were spa hotels with their own navigable canals, the main attraction of Palm Springs was the desert.The desert’s dry and healthful climate brought the first permanent non-native settlers to Palm Springs in 1884, when Judge John Guthrie McCallum and his family, seeking better conditions for a tubercular son, arrived from San Francisco. A mere two years later, Dr. Welwood Murray built the first Palm Springs hotel. By the time the town was incorporated in 1938, it had become legendary as a winter resort for Hollywood stars, European royalty and international business tycoons who came to escape the glare of publicity and enjoy the sunshine. Palm Springs is actually one of a string of Southern California communities occupying the Coachella Valley, a trough formed between the Little San Bernardino Mountains on the northeast and the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains on the south and west. Because the Coachella Valley is part of the Colorado Desert, maximum daily temperatures range between 70 F and 100 F, but extremely low humidity keeps conditions bearable. Rainfall averages about five inches per year. While the dry weather sometimes creates a drought, it never results in a water shortage. Natural aquifers beneath the sand contain enough water to supply the valley for at least another 200 years. The hidden water source is only one of the desert’s secrets. Visitors can learn others during several pleasant excursions. Desert Adventures (888-440-5337 or 760-340-2345) takes tourists by the Jeep load into the rugged Santa Rosa Mountains for a first-hand experience of the high desert. Knowledgeable guides explain characteristics of the environment and how they affected the lives of the area’s natives, the Agua Caliente Band of the Cahuilla Tribe. Several stops provide opportunities for short walks among the jojoba and creosote bushes. The oldest living thing known on earth, creosote was the wonder drug of the Agua Caliente, who had many medicinal uses for it. It even has been tested as a cancer treatment. Throughout the three-hour tour, guides identify the different varieties of cactus and any wildlife encountered. Animals indigenous to the area include bighorn sheep, coyotes, mountain lions, jack rabbits, road runners, Steller’s jays and an assortment of snakes, lizards and tarantulas. Desert Adventures offers other nature oriented tours, including one to Indian Canyons, ancestral home of the Agua Caliente. The canyons form North America’s largest natural palm oasis. More than 5,000 Washingtonia filifera palms, the only palms native to this continent, grow along the canyons’ streams. Stops permit discoveries of sparkling pools and waterfalls, Indian grinding holes, and some of the canyons’ 150 species of plants. The plentiful barrel cactus served as a crock pot for the Indians. They would cut off the top, add meat and vegetables to the cactus juice, toss in hot rocks, then replace the top while the contents cooked. At the top of Palm Canyon Drive, the Agua Caliente operate a trading post and snack bar, where visitors can relax on a deck and watch ruby-throated hummingbirds flit and hover among the shrubbery. Covered Wagon Tours (800-367-2161 or 760-347-2161) shows visitors the Coachella Valley Preserve from the pioneers’ perspective. The rig is pulled by a pair of mules, but it has two important advantages over the original desert schooners: rubber tires and padded seats, making the ride more comfortable for modern day greenhorns. A guide accompanies the passengers, relating the history and geology of the preserve, which sits along the San Andreas Fault, and describing some of the plants and animals that it was established to protect. The tour itself takes two hours, but it can be extended to include a chuck wagon-style dinner and entertainment around a campfire. The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway (888-515-8726 or 760-325-1391) offers an overview of the desert setting. As the cable operated gondolas ascend 8,500 feet up Mount San Jacinto, passengers witness changes in the flora and fauna as dramatic as those between Mexico and the Arctic Circle. The cars rise between steep granite cliffs hung with shreds of burrow brush, scrub oaks and wild grapes, where bobcats prowl. Near the upper station, the mountainside transforms into a wooded haven for gray squirrels, with junipers, white firs and big cone pines. At the top, visitors have a panorama that spans 75 miles from the peak of Mount San Gorgonio in the north to the Salton Sea in the southeast. The adjacent park has mule rides, hiking trails and picnic tables. The tramway was completed in 1963, but it has been continuously modernized to incorporate the latest safety features. The Living Desert (760-346-5694) is a 1,200-acre combination wildlife park and botanical garden, where visitors can compare exotic creatures and vegetation from around the world to those found in the Colorado Desert. Animals on view include Arabian oryx, gazelles, meerkats, tortoises and birds of prey. Plantings enhance animal habitats throughout the grounds, and carefully cultivated plots give visitors a chance to see desert plants in bloom. A visitors’ center features interpretive exhibits, a book store and a nursery. Photo courtesy Toni Dabbs
|
||
| DESTINATIONS: Africa / Asia / Australasia / Canada / Caribbean / Europe / Latin America / Mediterranean / Middle East / United States HOTELS: Canada Hotels / USA Hotels HOME: Home Page / Contact Us / Submissions |
|||
| ABOUT US: Travel Scribbles features hundreds of travel articles and travel stories with writing from some of the best travel writers covering hundreds of destinations from Africa and Asia to Europe, Canada and the USA. Personal experiences, travel guides, cruise reviews, wry commentary and even poetry on vacation destinations fill the pages of Travel Scribbles. We are always interested in submissions so if you have an experience of a destination you would like to share with our readers, or if you have any comments on our site - please feel free to contact us at info@travelscribbles.com |
|||
 |
|||
