Blue has a new walking jacket

He looks so good in blue!

Quartzsite landscape

While the crowds of the RV and gem shows are long gone, the desert still plays host to the snow birds from the northern states and Canada. A walk in the desert here is like walking on the moon. The ground is a mosaic of burned rocks that fit together tightly to shelter the sand that sits just below the surface. This year in the area where the RVs park we noticed that many have started to decorate the designated spaces much like the areas in the valley to the south. They take up the larger rocks to designate walking and seating areas and sweep the ground clear of all the small rocks that hold in the sand. Stripping the covering of rock is making the already dusty area even more susceptible to blowing sand when the winds kick up. It looks cool but seems a bad idea.

Good friends in the BLM

We had planned to stay a week but the beautiful weather and good company kept us here for the full two weeks. The people camping in our area made the time fly by, people like Tilly, Big Al and his wife, Kathy and her husband, the Czechs and we will always enjoy our memories of playing frisbee with Ms Mag while drinking cappuccino's with Bobbie. Plus, the locals were too cute for words, even if Blue was scared of them, the mother donkey and her 2 year old were charming. We'll be back!

Yuma historic town site

The historic area in Yuma is a small interesting area that is suffering for the times. With the traffic down many of the merchants are leaving. And later that afternoon, Gary found himself behind bars at the nearby Yuma Territorial Prison.

How to dump your RV tanks

There are so many techniques for dumping your RV tanks and this is one place to see the most creative strategies. Blue boys towed by a golf cart, big tanks, little tanks in the back of Jeeps and clothing is optional, I guess?

BLM not a dull moment

Much like the land surrounding it, the BLM is an oasis for every type of person and motor home imaginable, each with it’s own color and personality. Camping off the grid or “Boon-docking” as we say is it, not for everyone and the people that boon-dock are as unique as the surroundings. They are a social people but they do not want to be too close to their neighbor. It’s not uncommon to see a RV worth half a million dollars sitting near an old beater or home made rig. Some simply sleep in a van or tent and pull a trailer, often with their worldly positions. It is not uncommon the see people, including family’s with children that have lost their jobs, lost their homes or lost their businesses in this difficult time. But it is a community, and everyone looks out for the people around them.

We learned in our first day that a rig directly behind us that is home to a couple in their 80 had a serious emergency. The husband had a heart attack. The wife walked a few steps out her door over to Bobbie’s (a volunteer) for help. He had medical assistance from within the camp to the rig within 3 minutes and a medical team from the YPG (Yuma Proving Groups) on site with an ambulance within 10. While he was in the hospital the community watched his rig, running his generator to keep his frig loaded with food cold and ready for his return. The husband was back in his rig within 3 days and feeling great. This is common place with a large population of people that are 70 plus. But there are other stories that also touch the heart about those that are younger and in need of help. Like the women who’s rig broke down and had only $7, a collection was taken and even though many do not have much to give, when a large number of people pitch in even a little, they had enough to by her a better rig with the $4000 they collected.

We were lucky to land in a group known as the foodies, go figure, and have enjoyed several tasty treats and eats in our time here. But there are other groups and unique places like those on music row, or the book heads down in Skunk Hallow that take care of the Liberry (no Librarian, hence the name) or those out in the Northwest Territory or Snowbird Mesa and Herman’s Horse path... you get the picture. There is no end to the creative ways people deal with a no power situation, from wind to solar, you see it all in the BLM.

Yuma Proving Grounds

Just a few miles from the area we are camping in is the Yuma Proving Grounds (an army facility). As you enter the facility from the east side you find two large Howitzers and a short distance from there a display of US tanks along side the road. The first tank in the group was a Sherman tank used in World War II. The same type of tank that my father road on top of and walked along side of through much of his military campaign in Europe. At first I was surprised to see how small the tank was but I remember that my father talked about how nimble the tank was in the small villages and hamlets throughout Europe. He mentioned on more than one occasion the difference between the German Tiger tank and the much smaller Sherman's used by the US. The Tigers had superior gun power but the size was often their undoing in these small towns.

Senator Wash BLM boondocking near Yuma

After a few days of fun in the sun and many long walks with Blue (notice his new walking attire) in the desert, we have made the Senator Wash BLM land 20 miles north of Yuma home for a week or more. After a few stops along the way we found Senator Wash just as the sun was setting. We dumped our tanks and filled with fresh water and started looking for a site. After driving the entire place we ended up back at the entrance to park because it was so dark we could not see well enough to venture off the main road. We ended up in a good place however with several nice people to talk with. One couple from the Czech Republic hiked with us this morning to the top of the near hill to get a birds eye view of the area. They gave us some freshly baked cake from a solar oven and the local host stopped by with huge bags of lettuce to share from the nearby Imperial Valley. Very unexpected given the 1400 rigs scattered about the landscape.

We are actually on the California side looking over the Imperial Dam and Colorado river. The area is the hot spot of the US and one look tells the story, it is one burned out mountain after another with very little vegetation. But the valley below is filled with field after field of vegetables, citrus and date palms to feed the folks back home. The scale of the farming here is hard to imagine, nothing I've seen before in the midwest.

As we were parking the rig I heard some shuffling behind me and turned to find a very pregnant Burrow and her yearling staring at me. After we settled in and had the slides out we opened the door and the two burrows came up to the door to beg. Blue was not happy and hid for much of the evening and into the night. There is a very steep fine for feeding the burrows so I'm not feeding them even though they have very sad faces. Burrows have been in this area for over a hundred years so it is clear they know how to survive this place.

Notes to others planning a camping venture to the area, consider parking down near the water. The cost is just $75 for two weeks. There is a dump site, fresh water and two sets of bathrooms with cold water showers on the outside if you are so inclined. The cost up top is $40 for two weeks.

Painted Rock National Monument

Like the three rivers monument we visited two year back, Painted Rock National Monument has an area of rocks were native Americans left their mark around 500 ad. The monument was established to help protect the are and is a great place to spend a few night away from the hustle and bustle of the campground crowds. This is a no frills campground with vault toilets only, no water of electric but the sites a far appart with a nice table and fire ring. Generators can be run anytime from 8 am to 8 pm so the lack of power was no problem. It ended up a nice and cheap place to stay, affording Blue with many nice walks to search for lizards and bugs.

Lights in the night

Our stay in the Painted Rock National Monument included an evening lights show almost every night, complements of the Barry Goldwater Air Force Base 11 miles south of the campground. The evening were perfect for campfires and sky watching.

4 Amigos

We enjoyed our stay at Organ Pipe because we were able to spend time with Cassie and Jack, always a good time. And Cassie knitted me some half mittens which I love on the cold desert nights. Thanks C & J!

Victoria Mine hike

Today we walked the 4.5 mile round trip to the nearby Victoria Mine. It is an easy walk through the desert into the surrounding washes and to the edge of the mountain where the closed mine sits. The historic mine was one of only a few that had coper, silver and gold found in this area and ran out quickly. Mining in this region was truly difficult because of the lack of water. We learned about hard rock mining from one of the evening talks given by the rangers in the park. Other evening programs have included birds of the desert and cactus in the Sonoran desert. Lots of interesting information.

Ajo Mountain Drive

Across from the Twin Peaks campground is a scenic drive through the desert and into the Ajo Mountains. The drive is 21 miles long and takes you past 18 markers. Using the guide provided at the campground you can learn about the plants, animals and history along the drive. At the mid point we stopped for lunch and enjoyed beautiful vistas of the arches visible from the picnic area. We found one Organ Pipe cactus with a phenomenon called a crest. The abnormal growth can occur in almost all species of plants and is still a mystery. Some believe that it is genetic issue while others feel it is a deformation due to frost. A typical cactus has growth cells on the tip of the arms which grow in a circle to form a columnar cactus. A crest can occur when the growth cells form a straight line causing this beautiful Pattern.

Organ Pipe National Monument

Just a short drive from the border with Mexico sits the National Monument named after the signature cactus found in this area, the Organ Pipe cactus. The Organ Pipe cactus, along with Senita cactus and elephant tree, are natives of the Sonoran Desert in Mexico, but the only US location is here in this area. We almost passed this park by and we are glad we did not for several reasons. First, it is beautiful, remote and very quite, with the exception of the generator hours. Second, we were shocked to see our good friends from Ohio that we met in New Mexico two years back walking the park the morning after we arrived. What are the chances. So we have extended our stay to 6 days and have enjoyed many hikes, meals and great conversations with Cassie and Jack.

This is a large campground and the hosts we ran into on arrival were a bit strange. There is no power but the sites are level for most of the campground and the dump station is at the far end in the tent area. I always wonder who designs these campgrounds, not a camper, that is for sure.