Indian Country!

Palm Canyon is part of the Indian Reservation - indeed, part of Palm Springs itself is within Indian territory. And this is William, my Red Indian ranger who took me on a two hour hike through the canyon. This was probably one of the high points of the whole trip so far.

The palms ALWAYS grow where there is water. Hot springs are forced up by the fault lines which cause underground dams. I put my hand into a hot spring and it was really quite warm. The palm trees form the oasis and these were natural dwelling places for the Indians in the summer. In the winter they had to move to higher ground to escape flash floods as water came down from the mountains.
The palms can grow about 60 feet tall. The "skirts" protect the trunks from the heat but at the same time they provide a habitat for birds, Black Widow spiders, bats, rodents and all sorts of insects!

The oasis viewed from above. This is the biggest natural accumulation of fan palms in the world.

Notice anything strange about these ones? Yes, they have lost their skirts. They were burnt off in a terrible fire (vandals). But they have since started growing again, although they can never grow back down the trunk.

These ones have had their skirts trimmed to make it easier to walk through the grove.