Ryan Ranch in Joshua Tree National Park Ryan Mountain Ruins hike Ryan Campground trail to Ryan Ranch Joshua Tree National Park California

Despite the harshness of the desert environment, some people actually made a home in what is now Joshua Tree National Park. Miners, Jepp and Tom Ryan built a large house next to Ryan Mountain in 1898. Over a hundred years later, much of their old adobe structure still stands and can be easily visited today.

Two routes lead to the ruins of Ryan Ranch. If you are staying at Ryan Campground, you can hike 0.8 miles round trip to the ruins, with 45 feet of elevation gain. If you aren’t staying at the campground, the hike is just slightly longer, 1.2 miles round trip with 85 feet of elevation gain, starting from a trailhead on Park Boulevard just outside the campground. The trails unite next to the ruins. If you have extra time, there are additional things to see around the adobe like old machinery and artifacts, graves, a covered well, and petroglyphs.

Joshua Tree Ryan Ranch
The ruins of Ryan Ranch below Ryan Mountain

From Ryan Campground: Find the start of the trail at a panel across from site 15. The trail heads northeast toward the ruins, which come into view below the slopes of Ryan Mountain. Headstone Rock, a short rock formation with two climbing routes, is located just north of the trail (a path from Ryan Campground to Headstone Rock also continues to the Ryan Ranch ruins). After hiking a third of a mile from the campground, you will reach a junction with the other trail in from Park Boulevard. Near this junction, a panel asks visitors to help preserve Ryan Ranch. Walk the last short distance across the desert to the ruins.

From Park Boulevard: Find the turnout on the south side of Park Boulevard (Loop Road) just east of the entrance to Ryan Campground. Bathrooms and a panel about Ryan Ranch are at the trailhead. Walk south for half a mile to the junction with the trail from the campground and turn left to reach the ruins of Ryan Ranch, a short distance away.

Exploring Ryan Ranch: The panels at the trailheads describe the hike to Ryan Ranch, where:

…you’ll find the decaying adobe brick walls of the ranch house and bunkhouse. Scattered about, you’ll find a collapsed windmill, a stone-covered well, several graves, and machinery. Time, fire, and vandals reduced the site to its present condition. Please leave all objects you find for others to ponder.

The primary ruins of Ryan Ranch are the adobe walls of a multi-room homestead. While the roof is gone and parts of the wall have crumbled away, the arid climate has preserved much of Ryan Ranch. The panel also offers this description of the history of Ryan Ranch:

Jepp and Tom Ryan homesteaded this site to secure the natural spring once located here. The water was essential to the Lost Horse Mine, which they owned with their brother Matt and local prospector Johnny Lang. The ranch supported the mining operation: pumping water 3.5 miles to the mine, processing ore, and serving as a mining office and home. The cattle raised here helped feed the family and workers; some 60 people lived at the ranch and mine during the gold boom. By 1908 full-time operation of the mine ceased and the Ryans turned their attention to cattle ranching, until the establishment of Joshua Tree National Monument halted grazing.

To find out more about their mining operation, you can also hike to Lost Horse Mine, where you can see one of the best-preserved mills under National Park protection.

Joshua Tree Ryan Ranch
One section of the ruins of Ryan Ranch

The walls of Ryan Ranch have a nice peach color thanks to the desert clay from which they were made. The adobe bricks have another ingredient that is more unusual. In addition to clay, sand, and water the Ryan’s added tailings (refuse) from Los Horse Mine into the mix. The panel at the trailhead explains that:

Jepp Ryan, in the 1930s, discovered that the old mine tailings contained gold, which meant so did the brick–leading to dubbing the Ryan house, “the gold brick house.”

To have your own golden experience at Ryan Ranch, make the short hike at sunset.

Joshua Tree Ryan Ranch
Golden sunlight on “the gold brick house”

Once you have stepped through the adobe, stroll around the desert surrounding the homestead and see what artifacts you can spot. Blades from an old windmill are nearby.

If you follow paths away from the ruins, you can find an old ranching trough, gravestones, and Native American rock art. Remember that on federal lands, all ancient ruins, artifacts, and historic remnants are protected by law for the benefit of all people and should not be damaged or removed. Respect the ruins so that they may be preserved for future generations.

Joshua Tree National Park has an entrance fee and it costs extra to stay overnight at Ryan Campground, which has 31 first-come first-serve sites. No permit is required to hike to Ryan Ranch, so get out and enjoy!

To get to the trailhead: Take Park Boulevard half a mile east of the intersection with Keys View Road to the entrance of Ryan Campground on the south side of the road. If you aren’t camping, drive another 400 feet east on Park Boulevard to a turnout across from a sign that reads “Ryan Ranch Parking” where there is a bathroom and a trailhead for Ryan Ranch. Inside Ryan Campground, the trail to Ryan Ranch begins across from site 15.

Trailhead address: Park Boulevard (Loop Road), Joshua Tree National Park, CA 92277
Trailhead coordinates: 33.98882, -116.153846 (33° 59′ 19.75″N 116° 09′ 13.84″W)

Trail Map
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Elevation Profile
Click or hover over any spot on this elevation profile to see the distance from the start and elevation above sea level at that location, which will be highlighted on the map.

You may also view a regional map of surrounding California Desert trails and campgrounds.

Photos

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These photos were taken in February of 2013. Click to enlarge.
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oasis trail Lost Palms Oasis
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mastodon peak trail Mastodon Peak
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Camping
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Nine campgrounds with 500 total sites are spread throughout the park to facilitate your visit.
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The desert in bloom is something any outdoor enthusiast in California should see.
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Tagged with · National Parks · Ruins
Distance: 1.2 miles · Elevation change: 85 feet

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2 Comments on Ryan Ranch in Joshua Tree National Park

  1. […] Ryan Ranch – very easy out and back trail with an old adobe house at the end. We did this our second day which was perfect after being a little worn out from the day before! […]

  2. […] home to change, I fixed my hair and makeup in the car while Josh drove to our next destination, Ryan Ranch and we literally ran half a mile to make it to the adobe structure to take these photos. If […]