The servings at the restaurant were absolutely HUGE! Trevor got a massive plate of chicken and (bacon) waffles that were delicious. Tay tried the chorizo hash and Trent, the waffles. As you can see in the pics below along with the food, Tay met one of the Vegas “locals”. .

In the early afternoon, it was already 110 degrees, we made our way through the Mojave Dessert to Joshua Tree National Park. The loop through the park from one visitor center to the other took about an hour. The trees and rocks were really cool. We made our way up to Keys View, which was a spectacular view and is actually were the San Andreas Fault connects (video). One of the interesting memories from this spot was all of the bees. The park ranger instructed us to turn off AC as the condensation attracts the bees looking for water. There were swarms of bees but no one was stung.

After Joshua Tree we turned onto historic Route 66. We stopped to add our name to a long display of rock graffiti along the road. It was soooo hot, but lots of fun. We continued on to Palm Springs to the aerial tram. This was interesting as we thought we had arrived, only to discover that it was another 15 minute drive up a steep grade to the departure spot. The tram was interesting as it rotated as it ascended to the top of the mountain. This was one of only 3 such trams with the other 2 in South Africa and Switzerland.

At the top of the mountain we were in Mount San Jacinto State Park. It was absolutely beautiful and a stark contrast to the desert below. We were in a rocky forest which the kids absolutely loved climbing. Trevor is quite the climber and every time we turned around he was 50 yards up on a new set of rocks. Tess was annoyed that she couldn’t be right behind him. The temperature was a refreshing 73 degrees. The trails were steep but paved and easy to maneuver with rails. The views were spectacular..

We took a quick stop at Walmart for some snacks and then turned in for the evening…