Palm Canyon Trail

For our first day in Palm Springs, we wanted to get out and explore. I had done a lot of research on different hikes. We ended up settling on the Palm Canyon Trail hike. It was an easy hike, easy to get to, and would provide some great photo ops. It did not disappoint!

​In Palm Springs there is a series of hiking trails located in the Indian Canyons. When looking at all the different options for hikes, we knew we didn't want anything too strenuous and settled on the Palm Canyon Trail. To be completely honest, I had seen so many pictures of these towering palms at Palm Canyon and knew I had to go there and get my own picture. Which I did! 

​From the moment we stepped out of the car, we were in awe. We instantly saw a group of people staring up at the cliffside and there was a mountain goat. I had never seen one in the wild before and there is something so cool about seeing wildlife in its natural habitat.

Driving to the trail is pretty easy. Parking can get a bit interesting. If the main lot is full, you can park in their overflow area. Either lot provides easy access to the trail. 

Once on the trail, you encounter the tall palms right away. I found myself awestruck by their sheer size and beauty. They are not your stereotypical palm trees you see around California, but fan palms. They create a shady grove where you can stand and take it all in.

While there, a tour guide talked about how a fire had gone through this area and you can still see the remnants on the trees. 

From there, the hike really begins. There are different options, but we chose to go straight in, and once we felt we had seen enough, turned around and went straight back out the same way we came in. 

We loved all the unique scenery and plant life. Being from Oregon, we have many great hikes. But this provided a different experience with palms, rocky cliff sides, and unique desert plants all around. The trail itself goes from wide to narrow, and back to wide again. It never felt dangerous or hard to get around. We saw many older couples walking the trail with walking sticks and they were managing it quite well. 

This would be an easy hike to do with kids. We saw a few families on the trail. One had a baby strapped to them, the other had kids that were older and could walk the trail themselves. Later we came across them a second time as they were complaining about being on the hike. As beautiful as this hike was for us, we also commented on how our own kids would probably not be a big fan, as there isn't anything shocking. 

This hike was just what we wanted and needed. We could take our time, enjoy the scenery, and just have a good time being someplace new. To me, this hike is a must-do if you are in Palm Springs, just so you can take in the fan palms and get that cool picture for yourself.