DESERT CENTER, CALIFORNIA - MAY 10-14, 2025
DESERT CENTER, CALIFORNIA
When I say Desert Center, California is in the middle of nowhere, I'm not joking. Desert Center, founded in 1921 by Stephen "Desert" Ragsdate, was once a bustling roadside stop. With construction of Interstate 10, which bypassed Desert Center, and the closure of Eagle Mountain Mine, the town began its decline. It is now largely abandoned.
In its prime, Desert Center offered travelers a cafe, service station, repair garage and even a swimming pool. Today, many of Desert Center's buildings stand abandoned, with roofs damaged by wind and time and graffiti defacing the structures.
Desert Center today consists of Lake Tamarisk, abandoned buildings covered with graffiti and truckers & campers stopping to rest.
Further on down the road, you will find Lake Tamarisk Desert Resort. We stayed there for four nights. It's a very well kept resort with sites for RV and permanent mobile homes. The residents are mostly snowbirds, who come to stay during the winter months. Since we were there in May, there weren't a lot of residents and the ones we met were so kind. It is an active, vibrant, membership owned, 55+ community that fills up each winter with happy souls seeking warmth, community, and sunshine.
They don't really know how long the Resort will last, as a company is buying up the surrounding land to install solar farms. The Desert Sunlight Solar Farm is a 550-megawatt power station and is only 6 miles north of Desert Center. It is believed that these solar farms will continue to grow and the residents of Lake Tamarisk will be forced out.
We are big proponents of renewal energy. It is sad, however, to see such a well-cared for, vibrant community to possibly end up abandoned.
We really enjoyed our time there walking the dogs around the beautiful lake, walking through the neighborhood that was so clean with pride in ownership, flowers and cactus planted in yards and patios with decor that made it feel so homey.
We had the opportunity to drive into Palms Springs, CA, which was about an hour away from Desert Center. No doubt, Palms Springs is a world away from Lake Tamarisk. Lake Tamarisk with its simple way of life - Palms Springs with its hot springs, stylish hotels, golf courses & spas. There are many fine examples of mid-century modern homes. Movie stars began flocking to Palm Springs in the 1930s. They wanted the seclusion from Hollywood and the climate of the desert. Many studios had a 2-hour rule written into actors' contracts requiring them to live within 2 hours of the studio. Since Palm Springs was just 90 minutes away it was an ideal location for actors to spend their time away from the studios.
Many stars had/have homes in Palms Springs, whether owned or rented. Some of the most famous names include Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Dean Martin, Elizabeth Taylor, and many more. One can take a driving tour through the streets of the neighborhood where the stars lived. Most of them have high fences around them so seeing the homes can be a challenge.
To get an insider look at some of these homes check out:
We did get a shot of Liberace's home:
We also walked a bit on Palm Canyon Drive, the main thoroughfare with loads of shops and restaurants. We don't tend to do much shopping when visiting these cities as prices are high, and the tourists are a captive audience. We did eat at Sammy G's Tuscan Grill for lunch and sat out on their patio, where the dogs were welcome.
We enjoyed our time in Desert Center and our visit to Palms Springs.
Next we head toward Joshua Tree National Park.
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