Quartzsite 2010 – Part 2

 

Outside the MOC Circle on a nice day near Quartzsite, Arizona.

The big news at Quartzsite this year was an actual Tornado Warning on Thursday of the Big Tent RV Show! It was the first ever tornado warning that Kathy and I have ever been in! The problem, of course, is that there were no structures to take shelter in out on the desert. We all road out the winds (said to be 75 mph) and rain in our Montanas. Happily there were no reports of damage in our group. There were reports that a tornado touched down near Blythe and knocked over 3 semi-trucks. Whoever heard of tornados on the desert?

This picture was taken by one of the MOC people looking out their window during the big storm. The scene was actually darker than this, but this shows how hard it was raining.

 

Part of the MOC Circle after the storm

Since the desert is wide open we can walk cross country for miles and still find our way back to the MOC Circle. Raider and I try to get in a “desert walk” everyday that the weather permited. We generally walk two to three miles and Raider gets to run off lead.

Raider the “Desert Dog” ready to charge out across the desert.

Raider the very tired “Desert Dog” trying to make it back to the trailer.

Raider the “Desert Dog” the rest of the day after a “Desert Walk”.

Pictures of some interesting Saguaro Cactus we saw during  our walks:

 

  

RVers are the masters of potlucks and will have them at anytime for any reason.

 

Poor Ty wasn’t invited to the potluck but, then neither were any of the other dogs.

Overall this was a colder, windier Quartzsite visit than last year. We have spent our time sitting out the weather, potlucks, Happy Hours and campfires as weather permitted, shopping for beads, etc.

We have moved on to Casa Grande were it is warmer; although we had another rain storm our first night here. We are taking advantage of the full hook ups for long hot showers and are turning on every light just because we can. We are also using the large laundry and going to real grocery stores.

Sunrise in Casa Grande

Moonrise in Casa Grande

In a day or two we will be moving on to Tucson and the next stage of our adventure.

Quartzsite 2010

Montana Owners Circle Quartzsite Arizona 2010

Last year I wrote “Every January it turns into a RV Woodstock! Quartzsite is a very small town surrounded by miles of BLM land that offers free, no hookup camping on the desert. Each year during the third week in January there is a big RV show in here. Along with the 6 permanent “flea” markets there is nothing for an RV that you can’t find in Quartzsite. It is also known for it’s gems and stones. There are more places to buy beads here than anywhere! It is also the premier RV social event of the year. At its peak next week there will be tens of thousands of RVs camped on the desert, for a 10 mile radius in all directions. I think every known RV group has a rally site in the desert near Quartzsite during this week.”

That still sums up Quartzsite, Arizona in January. This year our Montana Owners Group has 53 trailers attending our gathering in the desert. We arrived a week early to watch the desert and our MOC circle fill-up. It also gives us a chance to visit the “permanent flea markets ” before the heavy crowds show up for the “Big Tent RV Event”.

Our circle has daily happy hour, and a campfire. There are a few potluck dinners and lunches. Kathy and the other Ladies spent their time mostly beading, buying more beading supplies or talking about beading. There is always someone working on some kind of “project”. The most ambitious this year was the installation of 6 solar panels.

We have had a mixed bag of weather this year. Our first week was a little cooler than last year but still nice. Then we had a windy day followed by a rainy day then more clear weather. Consequently, the crowds are large during the clear days as everyone tries to shop the flea markets, get groceries, do laundry, etc. During the bad weather days the ladies bead, talk about beading and plan what beads they are going to buy when the weather gets better. Most of the guys, read, surf the Internet and nap.

Sunsets pictures that Kathy took during the nice weather.

North Palm Springs

Snow capped San Grogornio Mountain to the west of our location, at 11,503 feet it is the highest peak in Southern California.

Everyone has heard about Palm Springs. They have endless golf courses, gated communities and very expensive shopping. We however have been at an RV Park in North Palms Springs! This isn’t even a town! It is an unincorporated area that has a a post office and a very small one at that. The RV Park is surrounded by empty desert.

View Larger Map

The above is the Google Satellite picture of the Two Springs RV Resort

As you can probably guess this is a pretty quiet and very relaxing area. Due east of here is the town of Desert Hot Springs. It is just big enough to  have gas stations, grocery stores and places to eat. When I last posted I wrote “so far it has been mostly windy.” Our first day here was very windy (we are just east of a Windmill Farm). We had a 12 hour wind storm that was 20 mph with gust to 50 mph. However since that day the weather here has been SPECTACULAR! While most of the country has had record breaking cold, we have enjoyed lows in the 50s and highs in the mid-70. Now, this was the desert weather we came for!

 

Photo of our campsite

Photo of the Wind Mills across the street with San Jacinto Peak in the background. San Jacinto peak is 10,834 feet tall.

We spent most of our time at North Palms Springs getting back into RV mode after our hectic time in  San Jose and of course, getting ready for the Montana Owner Circle at Quartzsite Arizona.

 

Our first sunset at Quartzsite this year