Sand to Snow: Black Lava Butte and Flat Top Mesa — Attraction in Yucca Valley

EDIT: Google Maps has changed the location of the pin BACK to the trailhead I set it at.

Drive up Acacia off Pipes Canyon Rd and turn right on Boulder View. Park just past Los Vientos to the North. You'll come across a sign that read "no access to OHV" which marks the trailhead (but is off limits to motorized vehicles, which makes it a nicer hike anyway).

And of courrseeeee this review is biased. :) Los Vientos Hideaway happens to be the closest Airbnb to this trailhead! So please, come stay there and enjoy the Sand to Snow hike!

This hike is incredible! It rivals any found in Joshua Tree National Park and almost no one knows about it. You are not likely to see anyone else on here either. Walk up that trail and on the first boulders you come to on your right (about a 10 minute walk) you will find incredible petroglyphs on the boulders. Also look for the bedrock mortar (a bowl carved into the rock). Continue on through the canyon for one of the most beautiful hikes you have ever seen! Look for footprints that head off the trail to discover more ancient petroglyphs, carvings and bedrock mortars/metates. Also there is an Airbnb called Los Vientos Hideaway that's merely steps away from the trailhead. Highly recommend...

This is an absolutely gorgeous hike. Easy to follow trail, no real elevation changes in the first few miles. Certainly far less traveled than the main sites at Joshua Tree.

For anyone's information trying to get to the trailhead via google maps: take Acacia to Boulder View (almost to the end, where you see the sign for "Sugar Mountain") from Pipes Canyon Rd. Do not take Curtis Rd. from Pipes Canyon.

Also be aware that the road is a very rough / bumpy dirt road. 4wd not necessary... but watch the clearance on your car, you might scrape the bottom in...

I spent more than an hour today looking for this spot. There was no Curtis or Juniper as shown on Google Map. Also, driving along a road that had to be Curtis, there were so many "deceiving" signs by the property owners that suggested that the road I was on would dead end. Did not want to take a chance having to do 20 point turns on someone's driveway, so I gave up. For a national monument, this place was well hidden from out-of-town visitors. I will be writing to the national parks management office. The property owners need to...