The sky was dark, the sun having set hours ago. It was a new moon phase, leading to even more darkness. I drove down the desert roads lost in thought. I had just set off from the Indio Cabazon Powwow and couldn’t stop thinking about my experience. So I just drove, further and further until it seemed like all civilization had faded away. Finally I saw the entrance for Joshua Tree and cut in. The new moon made it a perfect night to dabble in some astrophotography and my excitement was quickly growing. The night sky seemed to sparkle as far as the mind could comprehend. Its effulgence seemed so much more intense than usual, the stars offering a sense of depth that the city lights usually drown out. I pulled off onto a small dirt road and set up and for hours, trying to take it all in. Orion shone high in the southern sky, but the stars were so bright, even he was drowned out by his neighbors. After hanging out in the bliss of the heavens, I decided it was time to get some sleep.
