The Hidden Heart Rock in Joshua Tree

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Maybe you’ve seen the pictures of others standing at a huge heart rock in Joshua Tree, but you won’t find this hike on any map. But, this easy hike is one you really should attempt!

This 10 ft tall rock is found off Arch Rock Trail, however with no marked trail you have to keep your eyes open to find it! Because of it’s lack of publicity, this hidden gem is less visited meaning you will more than likely have the place to yourself. We love that!

How to find Heart Rock?

The easiest way to get to heart rock is to take the Arch Rock Trail. Parking for the trailhead “Arch Rock Nature Trail” is across the street (parking lot) from the beginning of the trail- You can park at the campground there as well, although I am not entirely sure how that works if you are not camping there- if you do that the hike ends up being less than a half mile. The whole hike from the Arch Rock Nature Trail off Pinto Basin Rd is 1.2 miles out and back and is almost completely flat. The trail is not well marked the whole way, but if you hike towards the huge boulder field following the rock path and hike around you are sure to see the arch. There are a number of plaques with info about the park’s geology (hint we will use these plaques to find heart rock).

***The easiest way to find the heart is to do the arch first. Then find this plaque… from here you can see the heart rock.

You can see the rock from this geological sign and hike to it from here. Take a little trail to the left, cross the dry riverbed and hike to the left of the boulder field you see above.

You can see the rock from either sign to get a good idea of where you are headed

This is a closer look at the rock from the photo above

At one point the trail off the Arch hike will split and you can go to the left for the heart. Cross a dry river bed staying to the left of the larger rocks in a boulder field to find the heart. If you are scrambling over rocks you are probably too far to the right.