THE DROUGHT IS BROKEN

As the weathermen had predicted for over a week, we got some much needed rain almost on schedule.  The rain actually started about 6 am Saturday in fits and starts but by 8 am it was bucketing down.  This is Spring Fling week here in Caliente and the parade is normally on this Saturday but with the ugly forecast, the decision was made a few days earlier to postpone it for a week.  Good call!  At 10:10 , about when the parade would be coming past our place, it was pouring and the wind was blowing.  It calmed down towards noon and the afternoon was fairly pleasant.  We did get more rain overnight and today was a mix of sun and cloud.

We did the same as last Sunday and took our supper out into the desert with the RZR.  It was a little cooler than expected today so I wished I’d taken warmer clothes.  We managed to walk in the desert behind the park this morning as the soil had mostly dried enough.  On our way home, I happened to glance behind us and spotted two large Javalinas crossing the road about 300 feet away.  They didn’t stay in view long but we sure got a good look.

Last Friday we went to Florence Gardens after supper for the Ice Cream Social.  The Saddle Strings from Howard, CO were the featured band and I thought they were pretty good.  They played quite a mixture of songs from country to 60’s rock.   One of the band ladies got me up for a waltz in front of the crowd which was fun.  We’ve had a couple of card games with friends and I took advantage of the stay inside weather yesterday to finish proofing and printing another year of my Mom’s diary.  The year 1996 ended on page 4,990!  That’s been a lot of paper and covers fifty years of my family’s life from just before my parents married.  There is close to ten more years to go as Mom continued with the diary until shortly after she went into care.  Somewhere along there we will get to where she started to mentally decline and it will be difficult to continue.  Aileen and I have been typing Mom’s diaries for over eighteen years off and on. 

Last Thursday was our ATV club's desert clean up day.  Aileen drove while I hopped out and filled a couple large bags then we had a wiener roast for lunch.  Aileen was even able to have a couple wieners as the group had purchased gluten free.  

This was during one of our "showers" on Saturday

Just as the rain was easing off but the street was still full of water

An hour or so after the above photo

Taken on our RZR ride this afternoon

Box Canyon

The next four images were taken this afternoon just above Box Canyon on the Martinez Mine Rd.  This is some of my favourite scenery in this area

WE’RE STILL HERE, REALLY!

Wow!  Twenty days since my last post.  We’ve sort of been in limbo taking it day by day as we had expected to have the new machine out quite a bit.   However, since Aileen didn’t want to break the law by driving without the proper licence, we kept waiting, expecting the licence to show up every day.  Finally after 18 days, I found that it was sitting in a title company office 43 miles from here so we went right up and got it on Saturday.  Otherwise, it would have been Tuesday before it was delivered to the dealer who would then notify us.  Very frustrating, and I never did get to the reason why it had to go through those channels rather than my taking the paperwork to the motor vehicle office and doing it myself. 

We did take the new machine out for a nice drive Sunday afternoon.  We took our supper with us and found a little ridge to park on so we could admire the view while enjoying our supper.  It was so quiet that it felt like your ears were being sucked inside out.   We spotted an owl perched in a tree at one point on the way home and there was a nice sunset.  Aileen drove all but the first kilometer and did just fine.  I’ll have to get her out onto rougher and tougher trails to build up her confidence so she can drive herself and a friend while I ride my old ATV.

We’ve had the pets over to the vet in Coolidge twice in the past couple weeks for checkups, shots and teeth cleaning.  It is far cheaper to do these things here than at home.  We dropped the pets off yesterday morning at the vet’s then went walking.  I needed an early lunch so we stopped at Tag’s Restaurant.   Our next door neighbour’s Bob and Evie were there and invited us to join them so we had a nice visit with them as I got revitalized.  Since the grills were cooking lots of gluten rich foods, Aileen held herself to a glass of water with lemon.  Better safe than sorry.  We had met Ernie and Atha and Ken and Marie at Tag’s Friday afternoon for an early supper and the waitress found that there was a clean grill so she was able to get Aileen a nice steak before they used the grill for anything else.  It was good we were among the first customers for supper.

One day while Jim and I were out geocaching on our machines, my lower left rear A arm broke suddenly dropping the left rear down almost onto the tire.  With some help from some lost ATVers, we managed to repair it enough to drive home.  A couple days later after searching the internet, Ernie and I drove up to a used motorcycle parts dealer on the west side of Phoenix where I was able to get a replacement part.  It didn’t take us long to get it back together and good to go again.

We’ve still had no rain so it is very dusty out riding.  It’s okay for me when I lead but I’m not interested in following so I haven’t been out as much lately.  We are doing our yearly “clean up the desert” ride this Thursday and Aileen will drive us in the RZR.   We heard a few raindrops on the roof last evening but when I checked later, there was a total of eleven drops on the car back window.   That didn’t do anything to lay the dust.  I think Phoenix is past sixty days without measureable rainfall.  We are getting some cloudier days so maybe we’ll get some one day soon.

The Saturday before last we went to a dance up at Florence Gardens and the Saguaro Sunset Band was great.  They played a mix from country, blues, rock and roll and lots of other good dance music.   Before Jacquie and Jim left, we cooked a big turkey Aileen and I got for free at IGA back in December.  We ate at Ken and Marie’s and had Ernie and Atha along with Dale and Martha for a potluck.  It was a great feast then some of us played cards later.  Jacquie and Jim left last Friday for Quartzsite then after a few days were going to start heading toward home, expecting to cross the border around the 13^th of March.  We’ll be less than a month behind them as our last day in the US is April 10.  

Homeland Security Processing Facility on the right then Caliente, Tierra, Florence Gardens, Vista Hermosa and Casita Hermosa Parks.  We are in the right third, just left of the tall pole.

We took Ernie and Atha up Poston Butte one evening.  L-R Atha, Aileen, Ernie and me.  That is Superstition Mtn just to the left of the monument.  Apache Junction is at the base of the Mtn then Mesa and Phoenix etc are all to the left.

It was sunset when we got down to the bottom

On our walks we kept seeing these tracks.  Who makes them??

Now we know

Part of our riding area

Ocotillo bloom

Some of the beautiful scenery we ride past

Saguaro Cactus against the shadow thrown by an adjacent cliff

Gila Monster

A little group I led through Box Canyon

Desert Bighorn Sheep at the top end of Box Canyon

WE ADD TO OUR VEHICLE FLEET

Aileen in her new toy

Well, it has been another dry spell as far as this blog goes.  Life just cruises along day after day.  We had a good trip back from Quartzsite to Florence back on January 27^th.  We took the longer way via Gila Bend so Aileen didn’t have to try and follow me through the busy freeways of Phoenix.  We left at 9:15 and were back in Caliente about 2:30.

Then we were busy for several days.  Lots of laundry to do and the inside of the motor home was covered in dust.  We have friends staying in the park model for a couple of months now so we have less room to spread out.  I managed to get a spot in the storage yard to park my utility trailer so that helps a bit.  We’ve been up to Mesa and area several times in the past few days so are getting tired of that. 

We were invited to a Super Bowl party last Sunday.  Not being a sports fan, I sat in the kitchen playing Sets with a couple of the ladies.  I managed to win one of the three games.  That’s the first win in quite a while.   For being score keeper, you’d think I’d win a few more!  Another afternoon, we were invited to a party to welcome a new couple who just bought on Palo Verde Lane a few doors up from our park model.

Yesterday we were up to Apache Junction to pay for the RZR 570 that we’d bought on Saturday.  The manager delivered it last night and was here in time to join the ATV club at a hamburger/hot dog party in the Florence Gardens clubhouse.  There were 90 of us there.  Free food really brings the people out.  We took the RZR for a ride out behind the park and were rather disappointed in the amount of dust that came in on us.  I think it will be a fun machine to take us out to some interesting places while we are in area. 

Out along the gas line behind the park

Looks like somebody is having fun

QUARTZSITE IN THE REAR VIEW MIRROR

Winding down another year in Quartzsite, we'll be pulling out tomorrow morning heading back to Florence.  This has been by far the nicest weather year we've ever had here.  Just a few spits a couple times and not many cloudy days either.  Only a couple days that it touched the freezing mark, too.  

The past few days has seen a huge influx of RVs in all the camping areas but today there is a mass exodus.  It makes for an entertaining time watching all the comings and goings.  We're seeing a lot more ATVs running around this year.  It appears that RV sales were fairly good if the number of empty spots on the lots is any indication.  It seemed that sales in the big tent were doing pretty good also.  Lots of people leave there with packages.  Some years you would hardly see anyone carrying purchases away.  Overall though, the whole Quartzsite experience is shrinking.  Online sales are probably one culprit but I think less people are wanting to dry camp for more than a night or two.  Internet, TV and power consumption issues are maybe partly to blame.

Some of the area we walk in in the morning.  That's Q Mtn in the right center and our motor home is a kilometer beyond and to the right.

Still busy in the Big Tent on the last day

Northern Canada inviting visitors.  Alberta is next booth to the left.

And if that's not far enough from home, go to Europe

Lots of hucksters selling just about anything

Lots of purses in Tyson Well Flea Market

Taken from the motor home window yesterday morning

A BIT MORE QUARTZSITE IN PICTURES

After the slow start on Saturday, the RV show in the big tent is getting much busier.  Aileen and I went over this morning and we only did a small part of the tent before heading for an exit.  Too crowded for some of us.  I will have to make another walk over there before we leave as there is something else I'm tempted to buy.

Jacquie and Aileen spent some time at the local Beall's store yesterday getting some bargains on senior's day.  I had gone in with Aileen Sunday evening and selected some socks for her to buy me which she did.  She managed to find some clothes that she liked too.  Jim and I went and finished up a geocache run we had started a few weeks ago. 

The bedroom of a higher end motor home

And the living room

Need a hat?

Belts

Fancy mobility scooters

Just about anything you could need and lots you don't!!!