Photos by Cheryl Landes

The Sierra Nevada and and El Paso Ranges converge at Red Rock Canyon State Park, on California State Highway 14 north of Cantil. The park is a colorful, picturesque desert with cliffs, buttes, and rock formations.

During a trip to the Antelope Valley to see the California poppies bloom in the spring of 2017, I spent several hours in the park. I stopped at several viewpoints to admire the colored layers of red, white, and black in the cliffs and buttes, and the variety of shapes in the rock formations. About an hour before sunset, I hiked the Ricardo Nature Trail in Ricardo Campground and found several Joshua trees growing there. I was also treated to a beautiful sunset.

Ricardo Nature Trail