Hiked April 4, 2026. I've hiked Teutonia Peak in the past, although I only found two entries of previous visits on my blog. My first visit was blogged here.
It's a short hike, listed as three miles roundtrip, but measuring a little longer than that on my Alltrails recording. I forgot to turn the recording off when I got back to the car, but my recollection was it was near four miles by the time I got back.
I was still tired from my last Black Mountain hike, the day before, so, despite the short distance, I was pretty tired doing this one.
Not sure when my actual last visit was here, but it's been a while. There was a major fire in August 2020 (the "Dome Fire.") that killed many Joshua tree, and had the area closed for an extended period. Then, following a relatively brief reopening, the road was closed for rehabilitation. Apparently, that project continues. But, for now, the section of Cima Road from I-15 to the Teutonia Peak trailhead is open and in excellent condition. It's wider and smoother than it was, and now there's a nice, small, paved parking lot at the trailhead, with room for about eight cars.
From I-15, the Dome Fire damage wasn't that obvious. Joshua tree were singed, and, yes, some were killed. But most seemed to be standing and surviving.
The view as I headed south on Cima Road was quite different. Along the way, and at the trailhead, the Joshua tree forest was completely devastated. In some areas, nothing stood. In others, only a few dead skeletons stood. The effect was dramatically different from previous trips, when you walked through a lush (for the Mojave Desert) forest of Joshua tree, pinyon pine, and juniper.
Despite the turned forest, the shrub-height growth was good. Pretty good showing of wildflowers. Not rolling hills of flowers, but that's pretty rare in the Mojave Desert. But lots of individual plants, and a good variety.
I'm pretty sure this shot is actually from my Black Mountain hike (which I haven't blogged yet), but I did see several beavertail cactus in bloom in the Mojave Preserve, as well.
There were also a number of "King Cup" or "hedgehog" cactus in bloom. They're the last shot and the third from the last shot in this post.
The other splash of red were the Indian paintbrush, which seemed especially scarlet in color.
Elsewhere in this posts were some more desert dandelion and Dorr's (purple) sage. Then there area few plants I'm not sure about, although my plant identfication app seems confident.
The trailhead for this hike is about 13 miles south of I-15. There are no restrooms or other NPS facilities along the way, and none at the trailhead. There is a Shell station just south of the freeway. Also, normally, the Valley Wells rest area is just a few miles west of Cima Road, on I-15, but it's been closed for reconstruction for a while, and does not look like it will be opening any time soon (this, as of April 2026).
Dogs are allowed on leashes on the trails. No drones!
All paved roads are officially open, but there were cone along the way, and a sign warning of dropoffs adjacent to the road. Flooding during the winter has apparently cut close to the road, so if you go of the pavement, you'll slide off and drop a bit, which would be bad for you and your car.
Kelso Depot visitor center is closed, but, even when it was open in recent years, no food was available in the Preserve.
Ah, an evening primrose. :D Other common plants may have been tackstem, brittlebush, and tidy tips, goldenbush, desert marigold, and a few banana yucca.
This was Hike #17 for the year. Hike #16 was Black Mountain, in Sloan Canyon NCA (not yet blogged). Hike #15 was the Mount Wilson Trail (again) to First Water. Those both still need to be blogged, too.
