Trail Review: Lost Horse Mine Trail, Joshua Tree
Parking: Parking lot at Lost Horse Mine Trailhead or nearby street parking. Joshua Tree does have a $30 entrance fee. More about the park fees HERE.
Distance: 4.4 miles out & back (or 6.8 miles loop).
The start of the Lost Horse Mine trail is at the end of a long dirt road. The parking lot at the trailhead is not that big so there is a chance you'll need to park somewhere along that dirt road and walk but it really depends on how busy it is. If you see a ton of cars parked along the road as you drive in, chances are the parking lot is full.
This trail can be done two different ways, as an out & back to the mine or as a loop. The loop is longer at about 6.8 miles so if you want more mileage out of this hike, definitely try the loop. But we just did the out & back portion which was thoroughly enjoyable and probably the better choice that day since it was extremely windy.
The start of the trail has some signage to give you some backstory to the trail and mine. After the signage, follow the trail to the left to start your journey. The path is a combination of dirt and hard rock and has a bit of an incline for most of the way. It's wide enough where passing people shouldn't be too hard.
One of the highlights of the trail (in my opinion) are all of the juniper bushes you get to see. Some areas are pretty dense with them and they add a little something different to the landscape. Other areas though are pretty barren because of a fire; a sad reminder that even our national parks are fragile and vulnerable to destruction. But that is only for part of the trail. There is plenty of time to enjoy the natural wonder of Joshua Tree along the way.
You'll see the Lost Horse Mine well before you reach it as it is situated up on a hill. That hill, in fact, is probably the hardest part of the trail but thankfully it is a pretty short trip up once you get there. The mine itself is fenced in to protect the structure and because I'm sure it is very dangerous for people to be around. That fence unfortunately hasn't stopped some people from defacing some of the mine with etchings and whatnot but overall, the structure looks pretty intact.
There are other areas nearby that you can explore, including a building foundation that you can climb down into (and escape the wind!) and some other mechanisms that were used for mining. The view looking out from the hillside is also quite nice! When you are finished exploring, head down the hill and back the way you came (or continue on the loop if that's the route you want to take).
Bottom line: A nice scenic hike in Joshua Tree that ends at a cool mining structure. The mine is fenced in but there are other things to explore nearby.
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