Twin Tanks - Post #1 Joshua Tree National Park

A "tank" is a natural depression in the ground that collects water. Local Indians took advantage of these tanks, and many times, established seasonal villages or camp sites near them. 

After the land was stolen from the Indians, ranchers and miners decided that these tanks would hold more water if they enlarged them. To do this, they added concrete and/or stone dams to them. These two tanks fall into both categories. There are many more natural and enlarged tanks throughout the park. As you can imagine, the ancient history that took place around natural tanks, is much older, and in the eyes of some us, much more interesting. I'll show you what I mean in a minute. 

Technically, Twin Tanks is not a secret. The words "Twin Tanks" appear on the park map, has a shared parking area (fairly well hidden), and even a tiny road sign (that you will likely miss). 

I won't bore you with basic info on how to get to the tanks, because it is readily available elsewhere. In a nutshell, you want to get from where you park your car to the western (slightly southwestern) base of the hill with the large white quartz rocks on top. 

 This hill

You don't have to climb the hill to get to the tanks. I hiked in from a different direction, and had to climb part of it, to get around it anyway. Plus, I wanted to take some photos from up there. That is the only reason I went up all the way.

 Well that climb wasn't too bad!

Actually, it was really steep! DO NOT try this at home kids. If you came to see the tanks, you should do just that, and don't bother with this hill.

 Close up

A view of tank #1 from on top (I'm not showing you tank #2)

 From ground level

The tank itself doesn't interest me all that much. What does interest me is in the middle of the photo. 

Cupules! Lots of cupules! In case you don't remember, cupules are generally considered to be the oldest form of petroglyphs. One other note of interest: See that little metal bracket at the bottom left of the photo? That was one of several brackets that supported a wooden "deck." I'm not sure exactly what it was used for, but the first couple of times I saw this tank (as a young lad) there was still part of the "deck" in place.

Lots of "back in the day" ingenuity went into this structure.

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Unless you are a very competent hiker, and have good survival skills, I'd advise you not to seek out these tanks via any route other than the one you'll find on the internet. This place is a warren of washes and small canyons, many of which terminate in a dead end. What I'm saying, is that it is very easy to get lost and/or injured in this area. For most people, getting lost in the desert or wilderness, is a very bad thing. Sometimes, it is a fatal mistake. This is made all the worse, by the absence of cell phone signals here.  Yes, I did hike in from a different direction, but I'm very familiar with the area. If you do go, stick to the route suggested, and get out of there after you see the tanks. Umkay?



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