Climbing Garrett's Arch: Joshua Tree National Park

An Off Trail Adventure to the Highest Rock Arch in the Park

With family visiting this winter we discovered a thrilling new off-trail hike in Joshua Tree National Park called Garrett's Arch. This trail, with fewer hikers and plenty of rock scrambling opportunities, provides visitors with an exceptional experience in Joshua Tree National Park.

Hike distance: 4.4 miles

Elevation Gain: 255 feet

Hiking the Wall Street Mine Trail Segment

The hike began at the Wall Street Mine trail, where Joshua trees flank the path towards the remains of the Wall Street Mine. Legend has it that Mormon pioneers believed the Joshua trees' branches resembled the outstretched arms of Joshua, guiding them to their promised land. However, there is no concrete evidence to support this story, suggesting it may be more fiction than fact. Joshua trees have been known by various names, such as hunuvat chiy’a, huêlye, dirk pear tree, yucca tree, and dragon yucca. The origin of the name "Joshua tree" over the others remains a mystery. Joshua trees are a keystone species of the Mojave Desert. Ecologists have borrowed the term to describe species that, by their presence, enable far more species to exist within a given habitat.

After walking a few hundred yards, we came across the remains of the Wonderland Ranch. It seems that the Ohlson family owned the property at some point in time. The specific details such as when they acquired it, how long they possessed it, reasons for choosing to reside here, the identity of the house builder, and their activities while living here remain uncertain.

Several abandoned vehicles were 'parked' by the ranch.

Less than a mile from the trailhead are the remains of the Wall Street Mill. The mill was built by Bill Keys, a local rancher and miner.

He saw an opportunity when this local mining region experienced a second gold rush during the Great Depression. In 1930 Mr. Keys bought the Wall Street Mill property and gathered equipment and machinery to assemble a complete and operable gold ore crushing mill where he would process ore for smaller mining operations.

In the 1940s, Keys was involved in a dispute with Worth Bagley over access to the Wall Street Mill. Keys shot and killed Bagley in 1943. Keys then turned himself in and was convicted of manslaughter. Dave and Scott decided to reenact the gunfight,

Going Off Trail - Climbing in Joshua Tree National Park

Starting here, the fun began as we hike off trail. Without a designated trail, you have to choose a route and navigate through the vast expanse of massive boulders while heading in the general direction of the arch. Nothing like a little climbing in Joshua Tree National Park.

Occasionally there was a trail to follow, but often the trail disappeared, or splintered into many trails. Sometime you chose the wrong route and need to turn back. It's best to study the terrain thoroughly before you go and use waypoints and a GPS device to avoid getting disoriented in this rocky terrain.

Occasionally, the easiest route was to go under the rock piles.

It's all about trust, when you're rock scrambling.

Taking a brief break before moving forward.

Throughout the hike, finding the route proved to be difficult.

Oh, did I forget to mention sometime the only way forward was crawling between the rocks

Along the way there were plenty of opportunities for side adventures.

Some of the climbing involves slickrock surfaces. Slickrock is a general term for any bare rock surface.

Here's a better photo showing Dave descending a slick rock surface. The level of difficulty for these climbs is determined by the steepness or grade, rather than the distance.

The vistas from the summit of these rock formations were exceptional.

It was a never ending landscape of crazy rock formations including this cave and ...

Walrus rock.

Scrambling to Garrett's Arch

After hiking for approximately 2 miles we arrived at the base of Garrett's Arch.

Disclaimer: When we hiked this trail with Paula and Scott, we decided not to climb to the arch due to our concern about the number of remaining daylight hours. But with Weston and Mackenzie there was no question that we would reach the arch.

Weston was the first to reach the summit followed closely by Steve.

This photo fails to accurately depict the climb required to reach the arch. Circled in red are Dave and Mackenzie standing at the bottom of the rock pile on which the arch rests.

We returned to Dave and Mackenzie to assist them in tackling the steep ascent and capturing photos of everyone's climb. The most effective method was to utilize the rock joint to ensure stable footing on the slippery surface.

Success and a sense of accomplish being so close to the arch!

After enjoying views from the top, we started our descent on the steep 30-40% incline. We used a technique called 'crab crawl' technique to prevent slipping on the slick rock.

Rock Formations on the Way Back

Back to walking on level ground and heading to the trailhead.

On the way back to the trailhead, we encountered more unusual rock formations, including the approximately 30-foot tall Red Obelisk. The red coloring, called desert varnish, cannot be seen from this perspective.

While I acknowledge that the angle of the photo doesn't emphasize the unique rock formation, it still captured Freak Brothers.

This formation resembled Snoopy, the dog character from Charlie Brown.

Lastly, the heart rock.

The afternoon was so much fun, but it was time to return to the car.