Main Index
(2D images only on this Index page. 1080p or higher resolution. Click Photos to Enlarge)
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- Jumbo Rocks Campground
- Skull Rock
- Inspiring Spire
- Hillside Views
- Conan’s Corridor Nature Trail
- The Wedge Area ♦ Balanced Rock ♦ Face Rock
- Skull Rock Nature Trail
- Zebra Cliffs Area ♦ Crown Prince Lookout
- Major Rock Climbing Formations
Detailed Jumbo Rocks 3D Gallery Links
The Wedge Area ♦ Balanced Rock
Crown Prince Lookout (pending)
Live Oak Picnic Area 3D Gallery Links
Conan’s Playpen
JUMBO ROCKS CAMPGROUND AT JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK has it all: extensive camping area and facilities, quiet places where you can sit and think, and scenery that bankrupts the vocabulary. You will find clean restrooms, wonderful people, the works. There is even space for large motor homes, but arrive early and be prepared to pay for multiple sites if you need them.
The Wedge
Best of all are the good hiking trails within and near the campground, many no more strenuous than a stroll in the park, others more difficult and lengthy allowing you to just take off through the desert from your camp site.
This is also one of the best campgrounds for children, who will have the time of their lives scampering over the rocks and playing hide-and-seek in the juniper bush dotted gullies. There are hills to climb, rock climbers to stare at while they perform their intricate maneuvers, and a 1.7 mile Nature Trail that traverses the campground area and then crosses Park Boulevard to take you through the rolling terrain on the north side where Conan’s Corridor and The Wedge dominate the truly jumbo-sized granite formations.
Slow-Children at Play
(You, too, can clown for the camera the way these exemplars have.)
Sites, Sights, and Scenes
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Campground
Spire
Sometimes referred to as Conical or Spire Rock. Campsite 18 in Jumbo Rocks Campground is where you head to view this lovely Spire ( 33°59’28.16″N 116° 3’51.07″W ) and its neighborly juniper bush. And inspiring they are—individually or side-by-side. I had loads of fun photographing them in 3D. Others from time immemorial have photographed this spot. You can search Google Images or Flickr or Panoramio and find an incredible variety, including various daylight, sunset, and night-time shots.
Campers stake-out their campsites by posting their ticket on the numbered post, and it is impolite to use their parking spots if so marked. As a casual visitor, you may have to hunt for one of the public parking areas on busy weekends. These are interspersed within the hideously confusing, maze-like campground. A stroll to the desired Campsite 18 spot won’t be too far out of the way. (See campsite schematic above.) Once arrived, a short few steps up one of the side washes or along the low ridge of granite rocks, takes you in seconds to your destination.
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- Spire Rock’s most photogenic angle
Jumbo Rocks Corridor ♦ Sky King Area
Zebra Cliffs
Zebra Cliffs view from Jumbo Rocks campground
Skull Rock Area ♦ Face Rock
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- E! skulking around Skull Rock, Nov 2012
Conan’s Corridor Nature Trail
This conglomeration of rocks lies almost directly across Park Boulevard (north) of the entrance to Jumbo Rocks Campground. The rock climbers say that unlike the Jumbo Rocks Campground, the rock here tends to be quite good. Areas within the Conan’s Corridor nature trail hike include Corridor Face, Lost Corridor, and Nuclear Reactor Rock, Pathetic Dome, Earth First Rock, and Prime Clump.
The Wedge ♦ Balanced Rock
Skull Rock Trail
2016 Sep 3
Hillside Views ♦ Scenes from Above
2013 Apr 1
Live Oak Picnic Area
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- Live Oak Picnic Area and the Pope’s Hat
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- Rare hybrid live oak, early spring greening
Pope’s Hat
Ivanpah Tanks
Ivanpah Tank, lower dam
Ivanpah Tank, main or upper dam
One-third mile south of Live Oak Picnic Area a large wash drains this area of Jumbo Rocks. Early cattle ranchers placed two small dams across it to store seasonal water for their cattle and horses. The larger dam or main ‘tank’ as it was called, is the one described in guide books. There is a second dam several hundred yards further down the wash. This lower dam is approximately three feet tall at its base and is sand-filled. It is approximately 30-40ft wide, partially covered with brush.
Crown Prince Lookout (pending)
The Hen House
The Hen House, back left
Thank you for your interest in Jumbo Rocks Campground, one of the most popular camping destinations in Joshua Tree National Park.
John Murbach
Temple City, California
Posted 2016 Mar 6
Updated 2018 Apr 5
