January 12, 2002
We left Desert Hot Springs on Sunday the 6th, arriving here in Quartzsite that afternoon, having crossed the Mojave Desert of CA and entered the Sonora Desert in AZ The Life On Wheels (LOW) group is planning on a "reunion" here, and since we'd attended the conference/seminar in June 2000 and knew some of the people, we thought it would be fun to camp with them. The BLM volunteers directed us to the area they thought the LOW group would be in, and we headed in that direction. Pretty handy spot, because we can walk to almost all the activities. The advantage to that of course is with one-half to one million people gathering in this normally under 10,000- person town with no signal lights, is the incredible traffic we've heard about. And even now, before the "Main Event" (which begins on the 19th), the wait to get through the intersections with flashing red lights takes a while. We felt kind of lonesome, and none of the people we saw parked in this area knew anything about any LOW group, and one of them has been coming to this very spot for 18 of the last 20 years. We parked anyway, and that evening got a knock on the door. It was a man who wanted to know if we were part of the LOW group and did we know so-and-so. We didn't know them, but felt better about our parking place. He opted as how we were pretty close to the exact spot if not in the exact spot. And then Tuesday friend John Christman came by on his way from Phoenix to San Bernardino and confirmed that this was the spot he'd been told about too.
I climbed up on the roof and took shots to the North, East, South and West to make comparisons of before and after. Looking north is I-10 running east and west just beyond that line of RV's. Looking east is a group from Canada, south is the gate we came in and paid our $25 to BLM for two weeks of parking, and to the west is Hwy 95 running North and South. Just beyond that bus parked on the right in the lower right picture is the gate we walk through to get to everything. That long whitish looking thing across the highway is actually a red and white stripped tent where the vendors for the RV show will be setting up. The RV show is from the 19th through the 27th, with other "shows" lasting until February 3rd.
With consistent sunsets like this, Barb just had to take at least one picture. And there we are standing by the "47 arm cactus" as the sign proclaims. Of course, if we were to count the arms, we'd get a different number, but no matter, the cactus is known as the giant 47-arm cactus. Saguaro cactus have to be about 75 years old before they put out their first arm, so no telling how old this rascal is or what stories it could tell; they are also the largest cactus in the world and only found in this area. They grow as tall as 45 feet and can hold up to 200 gallons of water after a good rainstorm and weigh as much as 10 tons. The picture was taken by another fulltimer who'd wandered up to see the cactus, and we chatted with them for at least 1/2 an hour. Never did get their names. That's not uncommon we're discovering. They were a good bit older than us, had been on the road for a lot of years, and had lots of suggestions for us.
Barb's standing by a 27-arm cactus (maybe) and the same rule about counting arms applies. The cactus puts out an arm to balance itself. Barb put out an arm to keep from falling into the cactus. The obvious reason why is in the picture on the right.
Same cactus, different views. Birds and other critters make their homes inside these plants, and the plant seems none the worse for it.
Barb is trying to find a "little" saguaro, but neither of us is convinced they come that way. And the bush/tree on the right is actually alive, regardless of its dead appearance.
The ? (sorry, don't know the name) from a little further away, and Barb telling a Cholla not to bite her.
Celia's Rainbow Gardens was next on the agenda. Celia was a young girl who died and this memorial was erected in her memory, and others followed suit. Many of the memorials are for youngsters, but there were lots of others that were grandparents, etc. The one on the right is a series of 3 small waterfalls. After searching around and following the wire, I discovered the solar panel on one of the posts powering the little pump that recirculated the water. Amazing what life is like in the desert.
This is Celia's memorial.
YAAHOO!!! Finally a Saguaro that is smaller than Barb! And then an overview of the garden. All volunteer with some input from the local Chamber of Commerce and other civic organizations of Quartzsite.
New day dawns. This is a sunrise, not a sunset. Gorgeous. We're so lucky to be able to enjoy things like this, and are grateful to God for every day we have. And on the right we have something I swore to myself I wasn't going to do. A picture of a rock. Well, a couple of rocks. Actually, there's a mess of rocks in this picture, including the egg looking thing. But as we entered this "show" and I saw all the rocks in different forms, I decided I wouldn't start taking boring pictures of rocks. Yeah, right. How do rocks get like that inside? From the outside, they look like plain old rocks, and I'd never have given them a second look unless they were in my way. Amazing.
Now this one was special. Not your ordinary old rock, no sirree. And somebody thinks it's worth $85 besides! I didn't ask if that included the stand. Oh, and no touching, either. They have been cut and polished for the most part. There may be more rock pics to come folks!