Hikers along the Bear Creek Oasis trail in La Quinta. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Sometimes it is better to do things alone.

This was one of those hikes where I had something to prove to myself. Considering I can’t remember my last hike, setting out for more than 8 miles, with nearly 2,000 feet of elevation gain was going to be a test.

I almost gave up. Who would know? Who would care?

The distinct flower of the ocotillo. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Pride pushed me forward. Sometimes being stubborn has its rewards. I stopped an embarrassingly number of times to catch my breath. My calves reminded me for a couple days what I put them through.

I’m ready to get my hiking legs back and do more of this.

The reward at the end of the steady climb was a beautiful palm oasis that provided the first shade all day. In an otherwise dry desert, there clearly is a spring here feeding these palms. This was like a cooling chamber, bringing down my temperature, providing me a place to sit and eat the lunch I brought.

The desert’s beauty spills forth along the Bear Creek Oasis trail. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

By then the totally overcast skies had parted so blue was above the green fronds. It was magical.

I knew this trail ended at a distinct point; I just didn’t know what was at the end. About a mile from the oasis the trail starts to decline. Oh, crap, no, no, no. I’m not going down to have to come back up this late in the game.

Down I went, telling myself I was so close. Though at that time I still didn’t know what I was close to. Then she revealed herself. Those palms beckoned me and with a spring in my gait I stepped into the oasis.

An oasis of palm trees is the reward at the end of the Bear Creek trail. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

At different points I saw what looked like where Bear Creek would run when it rains, but there was no water. This isn’t a hike to do on a super hot day because it is so exposed. But, then, that’s pretty much true of most hikes in the Coachella Valley of Southern California.

Air quality was poor, with La Quinta and Indian Wells full of dust that prevented the views to the Salton Sea.

No problem. I was more than thrilled with discovering cacti I had never heard of before—like strawberry hedgehog cactus, teddy-bear cholla, beavertail cactus, and cylindropuntia ramosissima.

Beavertail cacti and a barrel cactus along the trail. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

The beautiful red flowers on the stems of the ocotillo, the yellow of the creosote bush and blue palo verde, the silver of the brittlebush—they were mesmerizing. Even the rocks are colorful in this part of the desert.

Terrain varies along this trek—desert wash, sandy, compact soil, rocky, narrow, wide enough for two.

Layers of the Santa Rosa mountain range spill forth.

Other routes leave from this same trailhead that might be explored another day.

The cylindropuntia ramosissima is better known as the diamond cholla or branched pencil cholla. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

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Deets:

• Address: 77500 Calle Tecate, La Quinta
• Park: In the second lot on this street.
• Start: Under the sign that says Cove Oasis Trails
• Elevation gain: 1,992 feet
• Minimum elevation: 340 feet
• Maximum elevation: 2,345 feet
• Total distance: 8.53 miles
• Dogs not allowed.
• Mountain bikes (not e-bikes) are allowed in some areas.