The Cholla Cactus Garden is the sort of place that makes you slow down on instinct. Over a flat expanse of the Pinto Basin, thousands of teddy bear cholla stand in dense, silvery stands, each one a spiny cluster of jointed stems that glows with a golden halo when the light hits it from behind. They look soft, which is the trap. The spines are barbed, the joints detach at a touch, and anyone who has met one will tell you it does not feel cuddly. A short loop trail winds through the thickest part, and you should stay on it.
The garden belongs to the Colorado Desert, the lower and hotter part of the park, where the vegetation is more sparse and the colours more muted than the Joshua trees farther up. Ocotillo, creosote bush and smoke trees dot the washes, and after a wet winter the whole area bursts into bloom in March and April. The best time to visit is in the late afternoon, when the low sun lights the spines and the heat has eased. Sunrise is also magnificent, and quiet.
The ride in is part of the pleasure. Park Boulevard descends from the high Mojave plateau through a long, easy sweep of curves, and as you drop in altitude the air warms and the landscape changes. The road is smooth, with long straights and good visibility, and the traffic is light on weekdays. This is a place where the sky is enormous, and in summer it is also fierce, with midday heat close to fifty degrees on the tarmac, so riding in the early morning or evening is much more comfortable. Watch for wildlife, particularly at dusk, and for loose sand blown across the road.
There is no water or fuel at the garden, only a small car park and a trail. The nearest towns are Twentynine Palms, about twenty-six kilometres away, which has petrol, shops and cafes, and Indio, to the south, which is bigger. Fill up before entering the park, because distances are long and signal is patchy. Bring water, wear a hat, and keep children and pets well away from the plants. If you do get a spine in you, a comb or pair of pliers is the way to remove it.