The Split Rock Loop ventures through a maze of monzogranite rock gardens at the base of the Eagle Cliff Hills. A rugged, lightly used trail branches off into higher desert and crosses a small corner of Queen Valley to Pine City, an area known for its high concentration of pinyon pine and wildlife, including bighorn sheep.

Monzogranite Rock is formed when molten liquid seeps upward and cools while still below the surface

The water storing chamber in barrel cacti has one of the greatest volume to surface ratio in plants

Chuckwalla are the second largest US desert lizard after the Gila Monster

The Split Rock Loop offers some of the finest examples of horizontal and vertical rock joints in Joshua Tree

A steep climb leads over the Split Rock area into the lightly visited Eagle Cliff Hills

Large rock gardens collect and shade water, enabling concentrations of vegetation to thrive in otherwise harsh conditions

While known for its trees, the large rock piles of Pine City also hold diverse plant and cacti gardens

Queen Valley was formed by differential erosion between surrounding mountains and underlying rock

Joshua Trees are scarce in the higher end of their range (4,500') on the east side of Queen Valley

Deep, arid canyons lace through the Desert Queen Mine complex