Most visitors to Palm Springs never leave the poolside, but desert enthusiasts still visit to hike and ride in the Indian Canyons (daily 8am-5pm, summer schedule varies; $6; tel 760/325-5673), three miles southeast of downtown along S Palm Canyon Drive. Centuries ago, ancestors of the Cahuilla developed extensive communities here, growing melons, squash, beans and corn. The canyons are about fifteen miles long, and can be toured by car, although it's worth walking at least a few miles; the easiest trails lead past the waterfalls, rocky gorges and palm trees of Palm Canyon and Andreas Canyon . Some areas are set aside for trailblazing in jeeps and four-wheel-drives; rent a vehicle from Off-Road Rentals, four miles north of town at 59755 Hwy-111 (Sept-June only; $30 per hour; tel 760/325-0376, ), or take a guided jeep adventure around the Santa Rosa Mountains with Desert Adventures, 67555 E Palm Canyon Drive, Cathedral City ($89 for 3hr trip, $109 for 4hr; tel 760/324-JEEP, ).
If the desert heat becomes too much to bear, large cable cars grind and sway over eight thousand feet up the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway , Tramway Road, just off Hwy-111 north of Palm Springs (daily 10am-9.45pm, weekends open at 8am; $20.80, kids 3-12 $13.80; tel 760/325-1391, ), passing through five climatic zones on the way to the 10,815ft summit of Mount San Jacinto, where there's a bar and restaurant at the Mountain Station
