Everyone’s heard of Palm Springs, but many people do not realize that the destination is actually nine distinctive Coachella Valley desert communities including Cathedral City, Indio, La Quinta, and Rancho Mirage. I’ve been to the town of Palm Springs many times, but for this journey I came specifically to explore the city of Palm Desert and the outdoor adventure opportunities in the surrounding countryside.
Ryan Stendell, Director of Community Development City of Palm Desert shares his insider’ suggestions for cool outdoor adventures, of course including swimming, tennis, golf, and dramatic hiking routes, including the Art Smith hiking trail that leads to three legendary and much photographed Palm Tree Oasis.
We’ll join a Red Jeep Desert Adventure tour through the wild and rugged hills that are disjointed by the legendary San Andreas Fault. And then we’ll visit with Even Trubee, owner of Big Wheel Tours following a 16-mile downhill bike ride through remote, awe-inspiring desert canyons cleaved and heaved by the San Andreas Fault. And naturally, our bike ride ended in the town of Mecca near the shores of the Salton Sea.
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And then it’s back to the heart of Palm Desert for a visit with Derek White, General Manager, and PGA Pro, at Desert Willow Golf Resort. With the art of golf being a prime draw to the Coachella Valley for decades, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised to learn that Desert Willow is a municipal Golf Course, as it reads more like a luxury private resort course.
Now you can enjoy my Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer in a new way. Download the free Otocast mobile app and let me take you on a guided tour of the places I visited in Palm Desert. With Otocast, you can browse through photos for each location, read interesting facts, and, if you are in the area, get directions to the exact places that I talk about in the episode. It’s the next best thing to accompanying me on a trip. Otocast is available for Apple and Android devices – just search for Otocast in the app store and join me on my Journeys of Discovery in a whole new dimension.
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This Podcast is funded by Oahu based, Hawaiian Reforestation Initiative
