Day 12 - Our last full day in Quartzsite, AZ

As is typical of our vacation time, the weather was near perfect on this last day and the forecast for the next few days is even better. It was near 70 today with no wind and bright sun. The next few days (through the weekend) promises mid 70's and similarly sunny days.

We spent the afternoon combing the Flea Market tents and seeing what was set up. The Main Event is not due for another couple weeks and it was clear that more & more vendors and visits are hitting the town. Attached are a few pictures of the various sights in a couple flea market spots.

For lunch, we can recommend the Best Mexican Food (yes, that's the name) as true to the Tex-Mex we are used to in Texas. Complimentary chips & salsa and a friendly wait staff with attentive service. They even had a special which Tommy ordered. Our total was only $19 and we were stuffed. The Ice Tea was clear and fresh. The food was hot on hot plates and the refills were also complimentary.

We have washed clothes and ourselves. The tanks are empty and full as required and tire pressures are good. We hit the road after topping with #2 diesel at the Shell truck stop around daybreak.

Raymond advised that trying to make it to Las Cruces in one day will be an effort. Dexter likes the breaks and we were going to stop in Tucson, AZ, then go on to Las Cruces the next day. In researching the places to stay, we saw that Tucson is very Anti-RV and has ordinances prohibiting them anywhere except at the Beaudry RV Park. We even read one report there a guy was hassled by the police in the middle of the day while stopped in a shopping mall to buy supplies and lunch. We decided not to patronize any town that dislikes us and our money so we're moving on to the the next town along I-10 at Benson, AZ. Arizona, in general, does not seem very RV friendly having closed almost half their rest areas and prohibiting RV's in almost every town unless you stay at one of the grossly overpriced RV Parks (I say grossly over-priced when they charge $38.95 to $49.90 for an overnight rest and parking spot). We figure $15 to $17 is fair for an overnight stop and $20 to $26 for a daily rate with 50 amp service and free Wi-Fi.

Anyway, it was fun in Quartzsite and we're marginally depressed to be heading home but happy that we had a good time and we'll see Steve & Raymond on Friday.

Happy New Year (a day early)

Day 9 - Saturday

We didn't walk up the hill this morning but we did get started early to drive to Blythe, CA, and grab some "Golden State" caches. We made it without any extra costs and found some very green areas with canals to irrigate the fields. It literally turned green once we crossed the border at the Colorado River. California has an inspection port for all vehicles and a nice young lady asked us from where we were coming. Upon hearing Quartzsite, she looked in the back and waved us on.

We found 7 caches, had a great Pizza Inn lunch and drove back in time to bake some brownies and photograph a decent sunset. The sunset lit our campsite nicely. See attached photos.

Day 6 - Wed (Geocaching & Desert Searching)

We decided to stay in town one more day and do some Geocaching. It was great and we should have done this yesterday. We saw many sights in the NorthEast Quadrant of the city. We even went off-road and grabbed 5 along the Sunset Trail. Attached is only one of the many cache pictures we took.

We had lunch at the Grubstake Chuck Wagon and it was very filling. Tommy got the #15 (3 Sliders) and could only eat one of them! In general, it is expensive to eat in Quartzsite. Most lunches have been $10 for each of us and that's without the drinks.

After lunch, we grabbed Dexter and went back to the Tyson Wash area of the La Posa LTVA and tried to find the TOW group or the Stonewall BOF group from their directions. We found the roads, found the washes, and found the turn in but didn't find any people other than 2 different man/woman couples who were trying to be out alone by themselves. Some of the roads were not suitable for the motorhome as the washes were too steep, the entrances too narrow or the rocks too big to avoid scrapping bottom. We found a space near road 561 past the 2nd wash that we'll drive to tomorrow morning. This is our last night in town and we're doing laundry and loading up water to be ready for six or so days of boondocking.

It was clear and sunny all day with a hint of a north wind but not too bad. I see Dallas is getting some cold weather but we're staying in the moderate range.

Here is Tommy with a cache in the middle of some tall cactus.

Day 5 - Tuesday

It was a busy day. We started by paying for a 2nd night at the 88 Shades RV Park. Laundry was completed overnight and we could have left this morning but decided to take our time getting to the desert. The 1st order of business was a tour of the town in the daylight. We discovered wide streets, plenty of parking spaces, and most places just now setting up for the crush of visitors expected in another 2 weeks.

We took a trip down Arizona 95 to the La Posa LTVA (Long Term Visitors Area) where you get to decide if you want to stay 2 weeks or 7 months. There is a fee for each and we paid for 2 weeks ($40).

We toured the Tyson's Wash area and saw several places where we could, and could not, get the Coach into comfortably. We decided to wait until Thursday and then move out of 88 Shades for the Tyson's Wash area. While we were scouting out the area, a storm quickly developed (lighting and all) right near where we were. Tommy turned us around and we headed back out to the entrance area. The storm caught us and it was ferocious with hail and very heavy rain. The desert became a mess in mere minutes.

We decided right then to not go so far back with the coach and that we would find a level spot about 1.5 miles in and set up there. Attached are some pictures of the place and the storm as it was brewing.

We ended the day by stopping in Town to see what few vendors were set up already. I bought 22 Hematite rocks to put on my desk for others to see. They are magnetic and quite fun to put in different shapes.

Oh yeah, lunch was at Silly Al's Pizza and it was great. Silly Al's is a cross between a honky-tonk and a seedy, city dive (bar) and the food / service was very good. We recommend.