A great way to experience the desert is with a jeep tour. We visited Palm Springs twice and both times did this. I would recommend using Desert Adventures Eco-Tours.
Our first tour was up the Santa Rosa Mountains. Our tour guide, Pete, pulled our jeep up to a gated dirt road. He told us to make sure our seat belts were fastened because we were on our way to an exciting trip up the mountains. As the jeep ascended, up the narrow windy dirt road, we held our breath when looking down. At times it felt like our jeep might roll off of the road. We made various stops along the trail. Pete was a great guide - he knew everything to know about the desert, the flowers, cactus, and wild life. We were lucky we were there during El Nino -all of the desert flowers were in full bloom. We also had a magnificent view of the valley below.
Our second trip was out to the San Andreas Fault. We thought we would see a big crater running along the desert - we were wrong. It is easy to identify the fault; just look for plant life. All along the fault you will see vegetation. Our tour guide was very informative. We learned how the fault line feeds the valley with water. If there was no fault line, Palm Springs would not be an oasis. We were in all of the natural beauty of the desert.
Phone number 760 324 JEEP (5337)
Toll Free 888 440 JEEP (5337)
email - info@red-jeep.comPalm Springs
Prices vary from $60 to $80 per person, depending on the time of year.
Check out their website for coupons.