Panorama Trail and Big Foot Walk is a 8.9 mile loop trail located near Twentynine Palms, California that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking and nature trips.
Joshua Tree National Park charges a fee to enter. Fees are per vehicle or per motorcycle. If you are entering on foot or bike the fee is per person. You can also purchase a park-specific annual pass. Please check with the park website for current rates. This is a very quiet trail in Joshua Tree National Park. You definetly want a GPS with topo maps or a good topo map with the trail on it, as it is hard to find and follow. Nice area.
This was a beautiful trail. I got there about 1:00 pm and didn’t see a single soul the entire hike. It was magical. As others mentioned, finding the trail when you park your car is difficult. Just go to the left of the mountain and you’ll find the trail head then keep going left from there. I saw a roadrunner and a few birds, but not much else in terms of wildlife. There were some scenic views and I was definitely glad I brought my hiking poles for some of the uphill. Bring layers, lots of water and watch where you are stepping.
Beside slogging through the sandy washes, the terrain and view reward you at the top. Bring water and snacks.
We went off-trail on purpose and rejoined before the connection with Big Foot loop. We went clockwise on the loop, and returned after 2 miles in. We'll come back and do the entire trail.
It was a little difficult to find the beginning of the trail from where I parked. Glad I downloaded the map before hand. The park was very busy due to the holiday, but I only saw four other people on the trail toward the end of my hike. It was a long distance for me, but not particularly strenuous. Finished in about 3 hours 45 minutes—I think I went faster because of the strong and cold winds! I was wearing three light layers but wished I had worn more. Kept my mask on for most of the hike just to keep my face warm. The Bigfoot section of the hike was a little flat, sandy, and underwhelming, but the Panorama Trail made it worthwhile. I enjoyed the winding path up and down, with its beautiful views and many interesting rocks.
We did not really follow the trail until the junction of No/So Trail Corridor and Big Foot Trail. From the parking location, we headed straight to the mountain and encountered 5 Big Horn Sheep just as we turned behind those rocks. What a sight. They moved up and continued grazing. We continued up to the border of NPS and had a nice view of JT at 3900 feet. We then zigzagged our way down and hiked at the rocks foothill until the junction. We continued anti-clockwise on the Big Foot trail for another mile before we decided to turn back. We will try this trail again.
Awesome hike today! I completed 9 miles and did this solo. I was 100% alone out there too, no other people on this trail today. The beginning was hard to follow, so I just made my own way until I found the trail. Both trails were very easy to follow. The park uses rocks and sticks and logs as markers, as well as actual signs and arrows, so if you get lost, then clearly you aren't paying attention. Lol. Overall I loved this hike and want to do it again.