It was supposed to be more of an afternoon trip, but by the time we got people together and made the drive out to Joshua Tree, it was more like prevening. In the past I have duct taped the knees of my ripped jeans for adventures such as these, but this time I was convinced to skip that particular ritual. The rocks are rough enough to provide a good grip, but they can be painful when skin is pressed into it by body weight. My knee made its displeasure with the outcome known in the form of several scrapes. Going forward, I’m likely to repair those pants, hot pink duct tape or not.
Despite the memes’ passé status, being ancient history in internet time, we found a few good places to take planking and owling shots. Rachel, being a free spirit, insisted on climbing different rocks than the rest of us, then circled back and climbed our rocks too (her muscles punished her for the extra effort in the following days). One of the highlights of the trip was taking some great midair shots. I squeezed myself into a space beneath two large rocks and, since I left the SLR at home, tried to time the point-and-shoot camera just right. Thanks to our late start, the day concluded with the sun setting over the tops of the rocks, immediately decreasing the ambient temperature and reminding us that it was time to return home.
Perhaps to nullify the exercise, that evening we made ice cream sandwiches, layering a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie, creamy vanilla ice cream, and a chocolate chip cookie to craft an ultimate treat. No pictures of those—they disappeared too fast.
