Joshua Tree National Park in California, along with Death Valley National Park, was inscribed as a national park on this day in 1994 as part of the California Desert Protection Act. Located in both the Mojave Desert and the Colorado Desert, this beautiful park is named after a rare type of yucca plant, as seen in our photo of the day, below.
This rare type of yucca gives Joshua Tree National Park its name.
Here’s more about travel to US National Parks & Monuments
Here’s more about travel in the USA
The “Joshua” was the Biblical guy, so named by the Mormons who passed through. (Here’s a little background: https://www.wanderingnotlost.org/2011/03/california-deserts-joshua-tree/
The other interesting historical tidbit is that it took a rich Southern belle to preserve the desert landscape from all the folks wanting to decorate their fancy adobe houses with cacti. Here’s the poop on that: https://www.wanderingnotlost.org/2011/04/minerva-hoyt-southern-belle-to-desert-lady/
The southern california deserts are more varied and almost as interesting and beautiful as the Baja desert. Amazing places to spend time.