Coachella Valley Preserve, Thousand Palms

In the 35 years I've lived here in our desert, I've NEVER visited the Coachella Valley Preserve in Thousand Palms until Saturday. Saturday was the perfect day for driving and taking pictures, so I finally stopped and hiked around a little while. The signs posted me to the dangers there, but other people were out and around and I figured they scared off all the wildlife! An owl had been spotted in one of the palms that morning.