EVENTS

Events, Festivals and other happening in the Joshua Tree Gateway Communities

See bottom of page for detailed info

April

Joshua Tree National Park Art Festival
City of Twentynine Palms
For more information, contact: JTNP Association (760)367-5525

Sat Nam Fest 
April 11th-14th, 2013
Joshua Tree Retreat Center
http://www.jtrcc.org/retreat-and-event-info/sat-nam-fest-april-11th-14th-2013.html

 May

Joshua Tree Music Festival
May 17-19, 2013
Joshua Tree Lake and Campground
http://www.joshuatreemusicfestival.com/


Shakti Fest
May 17-19, 2013
Joshua Tree Retreat Center

Yucca Valley Grubstake Days
This event is a long-standing tradition to Yucca Valley, embracing the rich mining heritage that our community is proud of!
Downtown Yucca Valley
http://www.yucca-valley.org/news/grubstake.html

June

Twentynine Palms Street Fair and Car Show
Contact the Twentynine Palms Chamber of Commerce at (760)367-3445

August

Contact in the Desert UFO Conference and Retreat
August 9th-11th, 2013
http://www.jtrcc.org/retreat-and-event-info/ufo-retreat-and-conference-contact-in-the-desert-august-9th.html

September

Bhakti Fest West
September 5-8, 2013
Joshua Tree Retreat Center
http://bhaktifest.com/


October

Hwy 62 Art Tours
October 19-20 and 25-26, 2013
The Premier art event in the Morongo Basin when 100+ artists open their studios to the public during this two weekend event. Music, gallery openings and other entertainment events are scheduled for the evenings.
Visit http://hwy62art.com/ or http://hwy62arttours.com/ for more information.

Joshua Tree Roots Festival
October 11-13, 2013
Joshua Tree Lake and Campground

Pioneer days
October 19-20, 2013
City of Twentynine Palms
http://www.29chamber.org/Events/pioneerdays.html

November

Weed Show
City of Twentynine Palms
Contact the Twentynine Palms Historical Society (760)367-2366 for more information.

 December

Winter Light Parade
City of Twentynine Palms
Contact Twentynine Palms Chamber of Commerce at (760)367-3445 for more information.



Detailed event info

Hwy 62 Art Tours
The Hwy 62 Art Tours (formerly Open Studio Art Tours) event is held each year in October, sponsored by the Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council (MBCAC) and held in conjunction with National Arts & Humanities Month. The 10-day event, founded in 2002 in Twentynine Palms, features cultural activities and two weekends of self-guided art tours of the studios, galleries, and exhibits of more than 60 desert artists in the Morongo Basin.

Gallery receptions, art workshops, historical exhibits, theatre productions, special events, parties, and live music at a variety of venues are also presented throughout the region during the 10 days.

 Covering 50 miles and divided over two weekends, the studio tour is rather like a treasure hunt. (Maps are provided; bring water, and be prepared to drive on desert dirt roads to reach some of the studios!) The East End tour includes galleries and studios in Twentynine Palms, Wonder Valley, and East Joshua Tree; and the West End tour includes Morongo Valley, Yucca Valley, Pioneertown, Landers, and West Joshua Tree.

 Programs and maps for the Open Studio Art Tours are available free at area Chambers of Commerce, the California Welcome Center in Yucca Valley, and the MBCAC office and art store in Joshua Tree (760-366-2226).

 Visit www.hwy62art.com or www.hwy62arttours.com for more information.

Joshua Tree Music Festival and Joshua Tree Roots Festival

Produced by a family of friends and funsters convinced that music is the soul of life, and that art enriches and saves lives. That the experience is enhanced when embraced in the great outdoors amongst fellow music lovers. Better still in an intimate setting, where the distinction between artist and audience is blurred, and a passionate performance can be truly relished in close proximity to the stage. Add FREE water to patrons, no service charges on reasonably priced tickets, and well.....let the games begin.
Joshua Tree Lake and Campground


Joshua Tree National Park Art Festival

Visit the annual Joshua Tree National Park Art Festival in April at the park's Oasis Visitor Center in Twentynine Palms. You'll have the pleasure of seeing the work of more than 20 artists who share a love and respect for Joshua Tree National Park. You can't escape the feelings of camaraderie that exist at this festival! Each artist will have work on exhibit and for sale and will enjoy sharing their very personal interpretation of the Joshua Tree National Park with you.
Paintings, sculpture, photography, ceramics, and jewelry are some of the media included in the Art Festival. Joshua Tree National Park Association, sponsor of the Art Festival, is a nonprofit organization that provides support and assistance to the Park's interpretive, educational, and scientific programs. Open to the public, admission is free to attend the Art Festival. Begun in 1992, the festival is held on a consecutive Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in early April each year.
For more information, contact: JTNP Association (760)367-5525
Bhakti Fest & Shakti Fest

Shakti Fest is a festival which celebrates the devotional path that has its roots in yoga, kirtan, and meditation. It embraces ancient and modern sacred wisdom and traditional and non-traditional spiritual practices.
Joshua Tree Retreat Center
Street Fair and Car Show

Don’t miss the annual Street Fair and Car Show hosted by the Twentynine Palms Chamber of Commerce! This extravaganza is held on Twentynine Palms Highway (State Route 62) in downtown Twentynine Palms the first weekend in June. Vendors, artisans, and community booths line the street and downtown merchants extend business hours for your shopping and dining pleasure. Enter your own classic car or motorcycle and help us elect winners in a "People’s Choice" contest. Try your hand at a rock climbing wall, belt one out at a karaoke booth, or beat up an old demolition car. Have a snowcone or visit an old fashioned soda fountain. Get an airbrush tattoo or face paint for the kids. Local radio station Z107.7 FM provides music with a live, remote broadcast. Join us for hometown summer fun.


Pioneer days

What we know as Pioneer Days began in 1937 with a community May Day affair in which all school children participated. The grammar school furnished a rhythm band and a queen and her court were chosen from the high school. 

The hit of the day was the comedy provided by a group of townsmen who dressed up as girls and clowned through a May Day dance of their own. Their May Pole was a crooked tree branch stuck in a nail keg with dangling carpet rags for streamers. A well-attended dance was held that night at the tennis courts. In all, the celebrations netted $28. 

A rodeo was held the next day. Events included a boot race, package race, rescue race, potato race, relay race, musical chairs events, a take race, and a pony express race. The afternoon was climaxed by a beef barbecue and ice cream. A soft drink concession was opened, and Twentynine Palms Produce furnished free coffee. 

1938 found the celebration called Pioneer May Day, and in 1940 a parade was added. In 1941 the Chamber of Commerce took over the arrangements and changed the date to April. Rationing during World War II postponed further yearly events until 1946 when the celebration was once again held in May. In 1948, the Pioneer Day events moved permanently to October and Western days were adopted as the fixed theme. 

Three-day celebrations started in 1950, and Pioneer Days that year featured an ever-increasing number of parade entries, booths, and exhibitions. As the city has more than tripled since the 1950s, Pioneer Days activities have grown with its populations, increasing in scope and variety to become an annual event that both newcomers, as well as old-timers, look forward to with interest each year. 

Today, Pioneer Days encompasses nearly a dozen separate events during the third weekend in October, including a hometown Pioneer Days Parade, a carnival and community booths in Luckie Park, an Honorary Judge & Sheriff contest, Little Miss and Master contest, Grand Marshall's luncheon, arm wrestling tournament, children’s activities, pet parade, Firefighters Pancake Breakfast, chili dinner, old timers' reunion, TPHS alumni BBQ, bingo, art exhibits, music concerts, a beer garden in Luckie Park, and more. Most events are free, courtesy of sponsorships by local merchants. Enjoy family fun in a safe, casual environment! Contact the Twentynine Palms Chamber of Commerce at (760)367-3445 for more information and a schedule of events.
Weed Show

 The Weed Show is one of Twentynine Palms’ oldest and most unique artistic traditions, sponsored by the Twentynine Palms Historical Society. This annual display, now in its seventh decade, features artistic arrangements of indigenous desert vegetation as well as found objects both natural and man-made - a desert rendition of the traditional concept of floral display. Each show follows a specific theme. Entries are judged on subject matter, use of desert vegetation, use of accessories, artistic composition and originality. Awards are granted in nine categories, with a “People’s Choice” award to be decided by visitors to the exhibition.

The show’s roots go back to July 1940, when the Women’s Club of Twentynine Palms invited Pasadena printmaker Mildred Bryant Brooks to deliver a lecture on “The Art of Etching.” Legend has it that the local ladies, ever mindful of etiquette, were deeply embarrassed by the lack of fresh flowers with which to decorate the podium and honor their esteemed guest. The ladies of the club expressed their apologies to Brooks, who is then reputed to have said, “Why do you need fresh flowers when you have so many beautiful weeds?” The ladies then dispatched two of their members (including homesteader Ada Hatch) to gather sun dried desert flora from the grounds of the Twentynine Palms Inn, which they brought back for Brooks to arrange.

 The Weed Show made its official debut the following year in 1941. Initially held in private homes, its popularity soon grew to the point where it became a bona fide community event. After the Women’s Club disbanded in 1976, sponsorship of the show passed to the Twentynine Palms Gardening Club; then when the Gardening Club disbanded, the Twentynine Palms Historical Society revived the show, which has been going strong ever since and is now held at their Old Schoolhouse Museum, 6760 Naitonal Park Drive.

 It is one of Twentynine Palms most characteristic events. The Weed Show highlights the beauty of the local flora, the skill of the town’s artisans, and the history and culture of Twentynine Palms itself. For more information contact the Twentynine Palms Historical Society (760)367-2366.

Winter Light Parade

The Twentynine Palms Winter Light Parade is held annually on the second Saturday of December. Join us at 5:30 p.m. as we light up the desert sky with floats and entries of all kinds. Enjoy shopping, dining, and entertainment downtown following the parade as merchants extend business hours for the holidays.  

The Winter Light Parade tradition began in Twentynine Palms in 1994. This winter celebration features floats of every imaginable breed. In fact, if you can put lights on it; you can enter it! No judges, no trophies - it's all just for fun. Join us in December as we light up the beautiful desert sky then join us downtown for evening holiday shopping, a giant "Christmas in 29" gift basket drawing and more. Contact Twentynine Palms Chamber of Commerce at (760)367-3445 for more information. 

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)