Spooky Season, Desert Style: Halloween Finds at JT Trading Post, $4 to $48

The easiest way to give Halloween a Joshua Tree accent this year: a carved Cowboy Skull Tumbler ($48) or Skull Plate Hexagon Mini ($30) from Twentynine Palms potter Stray Ceramics, a Magic 8 Ball Candle ($25), a Tarot To Go reading ($22), and a handful of small desert-dark extras from $4 to $24, including a tarantula card, a raven photo print, and a cyanotype of Skull Rock. Every item and price below was live on jttradingpost.com this morning, two weeks out from Oct. 31.

Updated October 17, 2026, 7:15 AM PT

Why does Halloween fit Joshua Tree so well?

The park hands you the theme. Skull Rock sits along the main east-west park road, just east of Jumbo Rocks Campground, and the National Park Service says it got its face the slow way: raindrops collected in small dips in the granite and wore them down until "two hollowed-out eye sockets formed." The park also lists ravens among its commonly seen residents, and counts tarantulas and scorpions among its invertebrates. Skulls, black birds, and big hairy spiders are just the neighbors out here.

Which skull pieces are handmade nearby?

Stray Ceramics makes both of these in Twentynine Palms, each with a skull carved into the clay:

• Cowboy Skull Tumbler, $48. A ceramic tumbler carved with a skull wearing a cowboy hat. Desert Sunset and Red were the colors in stock online this morning.
• Skull Plate Hexagon Mini, $30. A small hexagon plate with a carved skull, glazed on speckled clay. Orange and Red were in stock. It's sized for rings, keys, or a few pieces of candy.

Stock is thin on both, with two or fewer of each color online, so if one catches your eye, don't wait on it.

What's spooky but not scary for the coffee table?

• Magic 8 Ball Candle, $25. Ask your question and burn it to find out. The listing says each 4-ounce, hand-poured soy candle "holds a different yes/no esque answer." It's a party trick in a tin.
• Tarot To Go — Magic Tarot Journeys in An Envelope, $22. Each envelope holds three hand-pulled tarot cards, one each for past, present, and future, plus a 1,300-word written reading printed on premium paper and a detachable poem on the last panel. It's a good stocking stuffer for the friend who reads their horoscope out loud.
• Botanica Holiday Incense: Harvest Pumpkin, $24. Twenty sticks of pumpkin, warming spices, and white oak, handmade in the USA and packed in a recycled-content gift box. It's for the night the porch light goes on and the temperature drops.

What can I grab for under $10?

• Cowboy Skull Sticker from Roaming Travelers, $4. It's 2 by 2.5 inches, and fits a water bottle or a cooler lid.
• Postcard Photo: Raven & Joshua Tree from kreaturetown, $5. A 5x7 black-and-white photo of a raven perched on top of a Joshua tree. Frame it in a standard 5x7 frame or mail it as a postcard.
• Tarantula Greeting Card - xoxo from Opal Atlas, $5.50. A blank A2 card with an illustration by Joan Horne, printed in the USA on recycled stock, with an orange kraft-tone envelope. It's the friendliest-looking spider you'll mail this month.

Is there a Skull Rock you can take home?

Yes. Look for the Skull Rock | Cyanotype Print from August Sun, $24 for the 5x7 (the 8x10 was sold out this morning). It's handmade in Joshua Tree using a traditional sun-printing process on watercolor paper, so the blue tones vary a little from print to print. The frame isn't included. Pair it with the trip itself: the NPS lists the Skull Rock loop at 1.7 miles with about 160 feet of elevation change, starting from the Skull Rock parking area or inside Jumbo Rocks Campground.

Anything Halloween-y happening nearby?

One for families: the Town of Yucca Valley's free Spooktacular Carnival and Car Show runs Saturday, Oct. 24, from noon to 4 PM at the Hi-Desert Nature Museum, 57090 Twentynine Palms Hwy. The museum lists carnival games, candy, classic cars, crafts, pumpkin painting, two magic shows at 12:15 and 1:30 PM, and a costume contest (sign up from noon to 2:30 PM, judging at 3:15 PM). For more, see our Around town calendar.

Where can I buy them?

Stop by JT Trading Post at 61716 29 Palms Hwy, Joshua Tree. We're open Mon–Fri 12–5 PM and Sat–Sun 8 AM–5 PM, or you can order everything above at jttradingpost.com.

FAQ

Who makes the skull tumbler and skull plate? Stray Ceramics, a potter in Twentynine Palms, California. The Cowboy Skull Tumbler is $48 and the Skull Plate Hexagon Mini is $30.

How does the Magic 8 Ball Candle work? You ask a question and burn the candle to reveal the answer. Each 4-ounce soy candle holds a different yes-or-no style answer. It's $25.

What comes in Tarot To Go? Three hand-pulled tarot cards (past, present, and future), a 1,300-word written reading, and a detachable closing poem, all in one envelope for $22.

What are the cheapest Halloween finds here? The Cowboy Skull Sticker ($4), the Raven & Joshua Tree photo postcard ($5), and the Tarantula Greeting Card ($5.50).

Can I order these online? Yes. Every item above was in stock on jttradingpost.com on Oct. 17, 2026, though some colors and sizes are down to one or two pieces.

Sources

• Cowboy Skull Tumbler, Stray Ceramics
• Skull Plate Hexagon Mini, Stray Ceramics
• Magic 8 Ball Candle
• Tarot To Go — Magic Tarot Journeys in An Envelope
• Botanica Holiday Incense: Harvest Pumpkin
• Cowboy Skull Sticker, Roaming Travelers
• Postcard Photo: Raven & Joshua Tree, kreaturetown
• Tarantula Greeting Card - xoxo, Opal Atlas
• Skull Rock | Cyanotype Print, August Sun
• Joshua Tree National Park: Skull Rock (NPS)
• Joshua Tree National Park: Animals (NPS)
• Joshua Tree National Park: Hiking (NPS)
• Hi-Desert Nature Museum: Spooktacular Carnival and Car Show
• JT Trading Post product listings, checked Oct. 17, 2026

Hi-Desert Field Desk is JT Trading Post's events and guides desk in Joshua Tree. We check every date, price, and closure against official sources the morning we publish.