Yes, it's the desert ... Just look at the Joshua Tree! On a bright January 1988 day, Amtrak train #35, the now-discontinued Desert Wind, threads its way through Cajon Pass's Mormon Rocks area on its way from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles.
Depicts Amtrak's "Desert Wind" service, which operated from Los Angeles to Salt Lake City, via Las Vegas. Its discontinuance in 1997 left the lower Intermountain region, including Las Vegas, without any passenger rail service since.