Cactus gardens, a skull-shaped rock, and those iconic trees

Now that temperatures are regularly dipping below the 100-degree mark, it will soon be safe to venture back into the Mojave Desert.  If your travels take you anywhere near Los Angeles, consider squeezing a day trip to family friendly Joshua Tree National Park into your itinerary.  It’s just 140 miles away, but a world apart.

While camping is always an option, we chose to stay in Palm Springs which is equidistant from two of the park’s three entrances.  We opted to drive 45 minutes to the Joshua Tree Visitor Center, wind our way through the park on Park Boulevard and Pinot Bason Road, and then pop out on the other side at the Cottonwood Visitor Center.  You could do the reverse too.

If you have just one day to spend in this desert oasis with your kids, here’s what you should do and see.

Grab your passports

Yes, your passports.  If your kids don’t already have National Park Passports, pick some up at the visitor center on your way in.    Then they can collect passport-style cancellation stamps and colorful commemorative stickers at every U.S. national park they visit for the rest of their lives.  I can’t think of a better souvenir.

Pack a lunch

There are no services in the park, so stop at a grocery store in Palm Springs, Morongo Valley, or Yucca Valley on your way to grab lunch, drinks, and—depending on the time of year—plenty of ice.  We recommend candy bars too, which can work wonders with reluctant little hikers.

Bring a lot more than you think you need, because the distances are long.  You could easily wind up having dinner (or at least appetizers) in the car too.

Hike to Barker Dam

As you drive to your first stop, you’ll begin to see hundreds of the wonderful trees for which the park is named—they’re even better up close.  Also, this is a mecca for rock climbers, so keep your eyes open for crazy people dangling from ropes.

If you don’t have a lot of time, we recommend the 1.5-mile loop trail at Barker Dam for your hike.  It’s flat with lots of Joshua Trees to ogle and boulders to scramble on.  You might even get lucky and spot some Desert Bighorn Sheep and Mule Deer who often come down to the water to drink.  Keep an eye open for Native American petroglyphs on the west end of the loop.  It can get a little crowded here at midday, but with good reason.

Picnic at Skull Rock

The boulders around this uncanny rock formation located near the White Tank Campground on the main road are as good a place as any for lunch.  Even though Skull Rock is one of the headliners in the park, we looked for it for a long time before finally finding it.

If you’re having a hard time, follow the crowds and look for something tall and pointy and much bigger than you’re expecting (see photo at right).  This is easier said than done in this landscape of serpentine trails and massive boulders, but it’s well worth the effort.

Once you finally find Skull Rock and take some photos of your kids standing in its nostrils, spend some time scrambling over the boulders and admiring the wildflowers here—it’s one of the prettiest areas of the park.

Motor through the Cholla Cactus Garden

If your kids are anything like mine (which is to say, ungrateful brats), by this time they’re probably going to be pretty sick of rocks and gorgeous desert scenery.

That’s just fine because the Cholla Cactus Garden and the wonderful Ocotillo Patch that’s right beside it is right next to the road and can be viewed from the comfort of your car.

Signs everywhere warn you not to stop and they may actually have a point.  I’m sure a lot of people get rear-ended every year as drivers pay more attention to the otherworldly flora than the road.

Shopping for a lightweight travel stroller?  You’re in the right place

It is an axiom of family travel that that which works at home does not always work on the road.  No one wants to buy an extra stroller just for travel.  But, let’s face it, no one wants lug the fully featured model (or hand it over to the baggage handlers) either.  Trust us on this.

If you’re looking for the best lightweight strollers for travel, read on.   If you like our reviews, please support us.  Clicking our links takes you straight to Amazon and doesn’t cost you more.

The Best of the Best

Looking for a lightweight ride that is truly easy to open and close with only one hand free?  Look no further than the Maclaren Volo.  At just under 9 lbs., your aching, tired back will love it.  But it’s real draw is the fact you can open and close it with ease – something you’ll appreciate if you ever have to quickly change trains at any European train station.

Fashionistas will appreciate that the Volo comes in a variety of great color schemes – and it’s easily cleaned up with just a diaper wipe or two.

For the Bigger Kids

It can be embarrassing enough to still be pushing your 7-year-old when you travel – but people don’t notice as much (mostly you) when you have a great stroller made for bigger kids.

The Zooper Waltz Single is a great big kid option.  It’s a sturdy 17 lbs., very easy to clean and also very easy to whip open and closed.  Total win for the whole family.

Double Your Pleasure

If you have more than one little one, you don’t have to pack two strollers – a double can work, provided you have the right one.  The Phil and Ted’s Classic Double Stroller (12 lbs.) is a great travel option.

Full disclosure:  it’s ain’t cheap but it’s sleek, slim design means your double won’t get stuck in a skinny market aisle or one of those tiny medieval cobblestone streets.  Trust me, people, I’ve seen it happen and it ain’t pretty.

The Convertible

When Chet was two, our go-to travel stroller was the Kelty KIDS Convertible Child Carrier.  We found that backpacks weren’t allowed in some museums while strollers weren’t allowed in others.  Total hassle.

With our 9 lb. Kelty, all we had to do was flip the bar, uncover the wheels and we could switch to the most appropriate travel option.  It was a lifesaver when we weren’t sure what kind of terrain we’d be hitting.

Off-roading vehicle

Take a gander at European strollers and you’ll notice one thing – big, nubby rubber wheels.  Why?  The cobblestones.  The whiplash from just a mile walk in Rome can make you understand why the right wheels can make all the difference on a traveling stroller.

A favorite is the Maxi Cosi Foray Stroller (one you’ve likely seen those fabulous European women using) – it’s 33 lbs. mean you are always prepared for the bumps of travel.

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Rainy Saturday morning + energetic children = day at aquarium
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side·track (sīd´trăk): n. 1. A diversion from the main course. 2. A detour taken with children that you would never, ever take without them.
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Who and What:
Myself, my husband, and our daughters, Zoe – 3 years and Cora – 2 years. Sea Life Aquarium in the lovely town of Speyer, Germany.

Why:
Simple math: Rainy Saturday morning + energetic children = day at aquarium. Unfortunately, many others shared this brilliant idea.

The High Point:
My kids loved touching a starfish and holding an anemone with the help of the friendly staff working there. The signs describing the habitat and sea life are in German as well as English. There is a glass tunnel you walk through near the end of the tour with huge schools fish, sharks, and a sea turtle swimming all around you.

The Low Point:
We found it to be a bit pricey at 13 euro for adults, 10 for kids. There is a one way path to follow through the aquarium that takes you by each of the exhibits which became quite crowded at some of the more popular displays. The path also goes directly through the gift shop in all of its breakable glory, making it impossible to avoid. Also, be forewarned that there is only one restroom location at the end of the tour for any of you travel savvy potty training moms out there.

The Kids’ Take:
Cora was completely overcome with joy upon spotting a small clownfish in a tiny display: “NEMO!!!!” Thank you, Disney.  Zoe: “Where are the sharks? Are we at the sharks yet? Where are the sharks? Didn’t you say there are sharks here with big teeth? WOW sharks!!!

The Bottom Line:
It would have been a better experience minus the crowd. If you do go, I would make sure you leave yourself a chunk of time to explore the town of Speyer as well. The aquarium is just a 10-minute walk to the impressive Speyer Cathedral, the largest remaining Romanesque church in Europe. Speyer also has a charming pedestrian zone to stroll, pretzel stands aplenty, and if you’re inclined to have a beer while in Germany, check out the Dom Hof brewery, where they have a playground for the kids in the beautifully blooming ‘bier garten’ area.

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An iPhone app that puts thousands of kids’ audio stories at your fingertips

When I think of family road trips, I tend to romanticize them.  I flip through a big deck of vintage postcards in my mind.  Here we’re exploring national parks.  Here we’re frolicking in the hotel swimming pool.  Here we’re happily gazing out the car window as the miles fly by.

That last one is particularly delusional because—like most kids—mine hate long days in the car.   But if you’ve got an iPhone, I’ve got the antidote.

All-you-can-eat stories on demand

Tales2Go is an app that puts an enormous library of children’s audio stories at your fingertips for a very reasonable subscription price of $24.99/year.  Play them over your car’s speakers or pass the phone on back.  You can browse by age, grade, genre, most listened to, or highest rated.   They offer a 30-day free trial too.

Win a free subscription

Are you heading off on a road trip this Labor Day?  Or in desperate need of a new carpool tool this school year?  Travel Savvy Mom is giving away one free annual Tales2Go subscription to one lucky reader.  Just leave a comment below by August 30th for a chance to win (U.S. only please).

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The world’s largest light bulb and more!
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side·track (sīd´trăk): n. 1. A diversion from the main course. 2. A detour taken with children that you would never, ever take without them.
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Who:
My family of four, including my ten-year old son, three-year old daughter, and my husband; mainly because I don’t drive New Jersey’s crazy roadways if I can help it.

What:
The Thomas Edison Center in Menlo Park, New Jersey. Edison’s laboratory was located on this tract of land from 1879-1884, before he moved to a more well-known site in West Orange, NJ. Still in his 20′s and relatively unknown during his time here, Edison was already churning out patents at the unbelievable pace of a sheer genius. Besides the phonograph and the light bulb, he came up with 400 other patents.

Why:
Museums can be hit-or-miss with kids. Heck, even I get bored walking through stuffy, silent galleries with rows of paintings on the wall. This museum promised a more accessible and engaging experience.

Any grade schooler can attribute the invention of the light bulb to Thomas Edison, but did you know he also invented the phonograph, motion picture camera, dictaphone, mimeograph, storage battery and much, much more? I guess I missed that day of school. Visiting this museum set me straight. The collection includes a model of Edison’s laboratory, early phonographs and light bulbs, original laboratory notebooks from the Menlo Park era, historic photographs, and an early dictaphone known as an Ediphone.

Plus, on the site stands the world’s largest light bulb, and I love visiting “world’s largest” attractions. A monumental replica of Edison’s first practical incandescent bulb, it’s nearly 14 feet of Pyrex glass segments. It sits on top of the 117-foot concrete Memorial Tower, which was built in 1937 by Edison’s employees.

The High Point:
The small staff of museum guides couldn’t be nicer, or more willing to provide one-on-one tours. Our guide patiently answered my son’s questions. Sensing his predilection for all gadgets electronic, the guide pointed out the similarities between how early phonographic recordings were etched into a cylinder, in comparison to how recordings are burned onto a CD today. My son understood, and granted him instant hero status.

Even better, he then played several of the antique phonographs just for us. Even my three-year old daughter stood still long enough to listen to the scratchy melody. Getting that little first-hand taste of history was well worth the trip. Have yourself a 40-second listen!

The Low Point:
The outdated museum building we visited was painfully small, and not great for strollers. A renovation project has begun to make improvements by the fall. Another restoration project is planned to return the light bulb tower to all its Art Deco glory.

The Kids’ Take:
Sometimes a little persuasion – okay, bribery – is needed to convince the kids that a day trip to see a site like this is worth their while. Ultimately, the fourth grader appreciated it much more than the pre-schooler. So we went to IKEA afterwards for Swedish meatballs, and all was right in her world. A little something for everyone!

The Bottom Line:
I would rate this attraction a seven on a scale of ten, especially if you have school-aged children in need of a hands-on history or science lesson.

Due to a strange compulsion for quirky roadside attractions, Traci L. Suppa drags her unfortunate family on trips to see the world’s largest…whatever. She blogs about it at Go BIG or Go Home.

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