Dale Dry Lake

Dale dry lake east of Twentynine Palms is a small playa with a gravel surface.

Dale Lake is a dry lake bed located just east of Twentynine Palms, California, in the Mojave Desert. Also called Dale Dry Lake, it sits near the transition zone between the Mojave and Colorado Deserts. The lake is a typical desert playa—flat, often crusted with salt or cracked mud—and only briefly holds water after rains.

In the late 1800s, it was known as Burt’s Dry Lake, named after prospector John Burt. Water was a precious resource for the many miners who worked the nearby Dale Mining District, and shallow wells were dug near the lake to supply camps and operations.

Today, the area is quiet and remote. Old Dale Road, a rugged 4x4 trail through Joshua Tree National Park, runs nearby and connects with Pinto Basin. Visitors can see old mine ruins and enjoy wide desert views. The lakebed itself offers seasonal bird sightings and is a peaceful spot for desert photography or solitude.