Joshua Tree has a housing problem, and the explosion of short-term rentals has removed hundreds of single-family homes from the market that were previously sold or rented to residents. While many of those vacation homes have returned to the market as furnished rentals, affordable housing remains out of reach for many locals. A developer is planning to add 64 homes to a piece of property in Joshua Tree, and tonight they are holding a community session to field questions and comments about it. The…

No matter what you got up to this weekend, everyone was probably talking about the weather at some point. Our Californian neighbors to the north of us may roll their eyes when they read this, but Saturday morning and evening was downright "chilly" for the hi-desert, dropping into the low 70’s with a breeze that kept things cool all night. Washes overflowed and flooded low spots on roads during Hurricane Hilary in 2023. Photo: Robert Haydon The slight dip in temperatures this weekend is…

If you’ve been on Highway 247 driving south from outside landers - you may have seen the striking signs warning drivers of the dangerous stretch of road they are on. "PASS HERE - DIE HERE" is the message, warning drivers on the 2-lane highway that despite double yellow lines on many stretches of High 247, impatient and dangerous drivers illegally pass others causing accidents and fatalities along the stretch of road that heads into the Morongo Basin. On November 20th of last year - a…

Listener Timothy Curr sent in these photos from Monday's full moon - called a Super Blue Moon despite appearing a little warmer here in the hi-desert. From the photographer: "From looking due west towards Twentynine Palms... from 7:30 to 8:01 pm we saw the beginning of the moonrise and to where it's completely full. It's the supermoon as they say so I took a chance to capture it." Photos by Timothy Curr

How are your plants doing? Save for some serious flash floods and downpours in Twentynine Palms - this summer has been relatively rain free for the rest of the Morongo Basin. Small showers and periodic precipitation are no replacement for monthly monsoons and sustained storms that give the desert a drink and refreshes the aquifer that our trees and other ancient natives tap into. I’ve stepped up my watering of my outdoor plants to try and keep pace with relentless heat. Certain natives I put in…