WEEK OF 18-22: TOOTLING

This past week we have just been tootling around Quartzsite and we even took a few ATV trails to see how far we could go in our car without putting it into 4-wheel drive.
We started on BLM road 419 and got between the two  mountains, then the dirt road split in so many directions and not knowing which direction to go, we decided it would be best to turn around.  We have been told that there was an old mining camp back there and that you could get to it by the way of 419.  We didn’t bring our trustee GPS system, so we didn’t want to get lost either.
On the way back we found this saying done in quartz stone:

while out tootling, we decided to check out the LTVA at Lapoosa North and decided that one was way too busy for us to ever consider staying.  Some areas even looked like they were almost on top of one another.
Then we checked out Scaddin Wash which is only a 14 day limit, although it was really spread out, and many areas to “hide”, you  can only stay the 14 days before they kick you out and according to BLM rules, you have to move at least 25 miles for 7 days before coming back and you cannot use their dump station or fill with water-not an option at this time for us. 
Anyways, getting back on track again, we are still on the hunt for that old mining camp.  And again we have not found it and taken the wrong road.  Brian was told that we could jump on the Interstate and take the next exit to get to it-the easy way.
We finally did and yes, we finally found the old mining camp.  However, for all those that seem to talk about it, it was disappointing to me.  Yes, it’s built mainly out of stone, but I never expected to find modern appliances.  Here are some pics of the mining camp:

well we finally had enough of tootling around and it was time to think about heading back home again.  Being this is our second year here at Quartzsite, AZ we always laughed at the watering tower in town where you can contact Quartzsite and pay for water, here are some pics:
notice that the “boy” has a longer “nose” than the “girl”?  Only time we ever saw anyone getting water from here was during the RV Show and then they would water down the grounds to help keep the dust down.
Also something new in Quartzsite this year was at every entrance to the town was new Quartzsite signs.  I guess all the money we winter visitors dish out here They finally put the money to some use.  Question is: Was it worth it or a big waste of money?  I guess that is why this town is in constant uproar over their own local government.  Here is a pic: 

Now that the car is all dirty and dusty, both inside and out, it’s time to stop tootling around and head back home.

VIRGIN RIVER CANYON

As we are looking and researching about going to Zion National Park, we discovered an area that we thought we would like to spend a night at.   Knowing that we would be leaving the Lake Mead area and heading down the road early afternoon, we knew this place would be a nice resting spot for the evening.
It’s Called Virgin River Canyon and is run by BLM/Arizona Strip Wilderness.  It’s right off I-15, exit 18 and only half mile off the Interstate.  This section of the Interstate runs only about 27 miles across the Northwest corner of Arizona between Nevada & Utah.

Although Virgin River Canyon is only a short distant off the Interstate, once you are inside the park,you really cannot hear the Interstate noise what-so-ever.  But you will hear the Virgin river roaring across rocks, specially in the spring when run-offs makes the river muddy and high and rapid.


You are surrounded by beautiful canyons that the virgin river created millions of  years ago.  We were told by the host that the only creatures we will probably see are reptiles, birds, and chipmunks.  Long horn sheep's roam the area, but have been pushed farther north into the Zion National Park and surrounding areas.


There is no limit as to how long you can stay, camping fee is $8.00; 1/2 price if have Golden Age/Access or the America the Beautiful passports.  There use to be a dump station, but no longer exist.  There are two loops to the campground, with the upper one being open and the lower one used as overflow or group camping.  Day-Use fee is $2.00 per vehicle.  Clean restrooms through-out the park with water access only at the bathrooms.  When fire restriction is not enforced, the camp host will sell you firewood.  We paid $5.00 for 9 pieces; which did us a nice fire for our Anniversary.

We will remember this nice little spot in our travels, if we ever are in the area again.

Desert Life-Part Two

I told you in part one, what went on in our first 4 months of boondocking in the Desert. Besides spend all of our money (ha, ha-he, he), we did enjoy being out here in the desert for the winter months. Now mind you, I don’t think I would like to boondock out here come summer time. the heat can get pretty extensive and there are critters constantly roaming the desert in the summer time, that I don’t think that we want to encounter.

Since hitting the road and other than our first winter out, we majorly spent our winter months down in the Valley of Texas; whether it was at Mathis, Corpus Christi, North Padre Island or Mission. This was being our first year away from Texas; okay I forgot, one winter we spent half in Texas and half in Casa Grande AZ. But the year we spent at Casa Grande, we don’t think we gave it a fair chance, for we ended back in Texas again.

Texas winters and Arizona winters are by far different, no comparison-other than they are both warmer than our Northern States that we hail from. Our Texan winters consist of constant humidity; which means wetness all the time. Unpredictable weather changes; meaning one day could be in the 90’s and bam the next day plummets to the 40’s with strong northern winds. Out here in Quartzsite AZ in the middle of the desert, you have no humidity; so you don’t wake up wet and you don’t go bed feeling wet. The sun also is out a lot more here in Arizona.

Down in the valley of Texas around Mission, Donna and so forth, you tend to get a “valley” smell that wasn’t always a pleasant smell to the nostril; but you learned to live with it. Out here in the Desert, you don’t get any nasty smells what-so-ever. After a rain out here in the desert, you get the most refreshing smell from the bushes and scrubs around you that just would make you want to keep taking in deep breaths. Here you don’t see much rain, and when you do, you welcome it to help settle some of the dust and dirt.

The native folks around here are willing to speak English to your face; which you didn’t always get in Texas.

Now it sounds like I’m putting Texas down, no, just stating the facts as they are. However, with that said, I have to admit that I do miss a lot of things in Texas, that you don’t seem to have here in Arizona. The number one is all of the wonderful friends we met while down there. We miss being apart of their winter lives. I miss the great entertainment people we met along the way, the ones that made you laugh and smile (oh, they know who they are). I miss the great Mexican food and cheap drinks. You can find reasonable entertainment on a daily basis and never get bored while in Texas for the winter months. There is always something to do! But I think the thing I miss the most, is the sound of the Gulf waters hitting the sand. I miss walking on the beach, along the waters edge, watching our little dog, Leah go crazy trying her best to “dig” up that sand crab or finding that unique and one of a kind sea shell.

The winter down here in the desert is really a different world and to some folks, they may never like it here. You don’t have the constant activity that you might find in Texas. Living out here, it’s easy to isolate yourself, which a lot of folks have done; such as us for part of it…It’s very peaceful, for the most part with only the sound of the light breeze blowing through or the coyotes howls at nighttime; which can get eerie. Or you can park as close to your neighbor as you want and not isolate yourself, but then you have to listen to their noises (meaning running generators) as well as them listen to yours, and maybe eat more dust because of the constant traffic in and out.

We probably were not as warm as what we had in the past in Texas, some folks even thought that we might had frost. Although it did get a bit chilly around here at night, we never really saw any frost. We did have some good windy days, but so did Texas! Our daytime highs this past winter never reached higher than in the 70’s with most days probably staying in the upper 60’s and nights reaching into the mid to upper 30’s. I know Texas saw lots of warm days; but we never saw ice, like they did in the Valley of Texas. Only once and just recent did we see a dusting of snow on the far edges of the Mountain tops; and with that I had to zoom in on the camera to get a good picture of the mountain.

There is no grass to speak of around here; it’s mostly sand/gravel with lots and lots of rocks of all sizes. Some that will even jump out and trip you if you’re not careful; so walking can be a challenge. You have varies types of cactus around you and a few that you have to be careful not to get too close to; as our pooch did once or twice and she still hasn’t learned her lesson. We don’t have any large trees to speak of, just some Palo Verde (which by the way gets no leaves, but large thorns) and some Iron Wood. The trees that can be spoken of are usually close to the wash basin.

There is so much desert, with lots of surrounding mountains that you can explore and even get lost in, if you wish to. We have walked miles of the desert floor and climbed a few of the mountains. We have gone cross country, not knowing where we would end up at-thank goodness for a GPS system to help us get back home safely again. The winter months are the best time to do all of this, because those nasty critters such as snakes are hibernating and won’t bother you. Now as February has gone and March is here, our weather is turning to warmer days and nights, so therefore our wandering the desert floor will be limited to the roadways for our safety.

So with all that said, I think that next year we will return back here once again to the desert life and living. We are not done exploring the desert floor or we haven’t climbed all the mountains yet….

Moon rising over the mountain

Snow cap mountains