12/26/2011 - We decided to leave San Diego a day early so that we would have time to visit the Joshua Tree National Park on the way back to Vegas. I'm so glad we did - hadn't heard of it before, but it was really worth the visit.

I'm not saying the planes at NAS Coronado, where we stayed, had a low flight path, but this is how they capped the trees so they wouldn't interfere.  (!!)  Yeah, that's pretty low.

Before we left, we snapped this picture of the sign proclaiming Imperial Beach the "southwestern most city in the US".

We stopped in Palm Springs because we'd heard so much about it in past years. Think North Conway on a much smaller scale. There was one street full of shops/restaurants, etc., - the rest looked like any other small town in southern California. I guess when it was in its heyday it was THE place to be, not so much any more. On the way out of town, we were blown away by the acres of windmills (maybe not "blown away" - more like impressed).

Joshua Tree NP is named for these peculiar looking trees.  There are acres of them in the park, as well as lots of interesting rock formations.

From the top of "Keys View" in the park.  At the top of the pictures you can just see the "Salton Sea" which sits on the San Andreas Fault, and behind it, Mexico.