Entrance station · Joshua Tree National Park
A quick north-side stop to sort your park pass.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Joshua Tree Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Joshua Tree National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Joshua Tree audio tourRecorded for this area
Sky's the Limit: Walk the Solar System“Up ahead is Sky's the Limit Observatory and Nature Center, just outside the North Entrance. For a daytime stop, I'd start with the outdoor model of the Solar System, called the Orrery.”
Plays on the road 0.1 mi from North Entrance Station in the Parkwolf Joshua Tree Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
The North Entrance Station is a small fee booth near Twentynine Palms, where Utah Trail becomes Park Boulevard. It’s the north-side place to pay the entrance fee or show your pass.
The booth sits between inbound and outbound traffic, with a stop sign and flagpole. Rangers may check passes or collect fees as vehicles enter, and sometimes as they leave. Treat it as a quick checkpoint, not a visitor center or a stop to linger.
You can buy a pass here, but the park lists this station as debit- or credit-card only. If you buy ahead, save a copy offline before entering; cell service is limited in the park.
Wildlife
129 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
15 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
413 sightingsDesert TortoiseMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
275 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
47 sightingsBobcatMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
32 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Joshua Tree. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateContact Mine Trail3.8 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.4 mi awayA quiet desert walk ends among century-old mine workings.
EasyOasis of Mara Trail0.5 mi · 20 min · 3.6 mi awayA half-mile paved loop beneath fan palms, with history on the signs.
EasyPine City Trail4 mi · 2.5 hr · 4.4 mi awayA desert walk to pinyons tucked among granite boulders.
EasyDesert Queen Mine Trail1.5 mi · 1.3 hr · 4.4 mi awayOld mine gear rewards a short desert walk; stay outside the gates.
ChallengingEagle Cliff Mine Trail3.5 mi · 3 hr · 4.4 mi awayA hidden cabin in boulders, reached by a faint desert route
ModerateSplit Rock Loop Trail2.5 mi · 2 hr · 4.8 mi awayA short boulder loop with a Face Rock detour worth the turn.
EasyLucky Boy Vista Trail2.5 mi · 1.5 hr · 4.9 mi awayAn easy desert walk to mine remains and a wide valley overlook.
EasyLucky Boy Loop3.3 mi · 2.3 hr · 4.9 mi awayDesert views, old mine remains, and a final road stretch.
Sight · 0.2 mi awaySky’s the Limit Observatory and Nature CenterWalk a Solar System model scaled for human steps.
Sight · 1.2 mi awayContact MineOld mine gear at the end of a quieter four-mile desert hike.
Sight · 3.6 mi awayOasis of MaraA palm grove with a surprisingly deep Serrano story.
Sight · 4.1 mi awayEagle Cliff Mine and Boulder HouseA miner’s stone cabin tucked into a narrow boulder cleft.
Visitor center · 4.2 mi awayJoshua Tree National Park Visitor CenterA focused cultural introduction before the desert roads.
Sight · 4.2 mi awayDesert Queen MineWalk a short loop past ore bins, old shafts and mining debris.
Sight · 4.4 mi awayFortynine Palms OasisA shaded palm grove at the end of a desert ridge hike.Sight · 4.8 mi awaySplit RockThe namesake boulder sits at the start of a 2.5-mile desert loop.Parkwolf’s Joshua Tree ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
