Thousand Palms Oasis Preserve

Visiting this palm grove is a truly unique experience, the desert Oasis seems like it couldn't be real. Locate the parking area off Thousand Palms Canyon Road. From Palm Springs take Ramon Road to Thousand Palms Canyon Road, turn left and come up the Thousand Palms Canyon Road to the Visitors Center parking lot. Just inside the palms is a rustic visitors center built in the 1930s and contains displays of the natural and historic features of the preserve. Easy trails meander through palm trees but there are over 25 miles of hiking trails on the Preserve, mostly outside of the palm groves. A short desert hike takes visitors to the McCallum palm grove with a large pond, a true oasis. One of the reasons for the preserve is for the endangered Coachella Valley Fringe-toed Lizard. It escapes the heat by swimming or burrowing beneath the sand. Gates open from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. from May through September and from 7:00 am to 5:00 p.m. October through April. Parking can get crowded, no RV's or campers, no dogs, the park is run by volunteers. There are picnic tables at both the Thousand Palms Grove and the McCallum Grove, perfect for picnics.