Palm Springs Gold

Rock wall made from Palm Springs gold

I'll never forget the time when one of the editors at Palm Springs Life asked to write an article about rocks. At the time, the magazine had a home and design section inserted in the middle.

My first thought was "rocks?" What am I going to write about rocks. Yes, they're hard, found in the nearby desert and sometimes kids throw them at each other.

When I investigated the story by calling Whitewater Rock Company, I found out that not only is there a wide selection of rocks in Palm Springs, but there is also Palm Springs gold.

Yet, another puzzling desert term. Of course, when the man at the rock company said Palm Springs gold, the first question that came to mind was do some of the rocks in Palm Springs contain gold.

No, that wasn't the case. The man at the rock company let me know that Palm Springs gold is the city's most common rock used for building. You can't miss it when you're out and about. It covers walls and used in flower beds. The stuff isn't gold, though, it's more of a copper color.

While Palm Springs has no official city bird or city flower, but it does have a rock.