Some one-of-a-kind places just defy easy description. Yesterday Betty & I returned to one of them. Quartzsite, Arizona is a most quirky community that has to be seen and felt to be believed. We came for two weeks on the first leg of our overlandish odyssey, and decided that we should try a longer stay, now that we have solar panels and lithium batteries to keep us powered up in the desert. It became a major destination for the current leg of our adventure. Arriving yesterday, we are still getting acclimatized again, and have much, much more to experience in this off-the-beatnik-path wonderland. But I thought I’d provide another brief introduction.
As we pulled into one of the long-term visitor areas, a sweet couple of volunteers greeted us and provided a map, long-term camping brochure, visitor guide, and permit that allows us to camp on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land until April 15, 2020 for a total of $180. So if one were to stay here for the full 7 months a year, that works out to less than $1./day!The campground host attached stickers to our car and motorhome that allow us to dump our waste tanks, refill our freshwater and use the dumpsters as needed (Betty would say PRN. lol) at no extra charge.We pulled off the road and parked in the desert among this scrub yesterday. There are large & small holes in the ground everywhere, but we’re just not sure who’s living there yet…Here is a view of our “campsite” from a different angle. There are many, many acres of BLM land on which to park, relax & enjoy the fresh air and spectacular views.Betty took Charlie for an early morning walk, before the sun got too hot. Even though we watched tv last night, left lights on inside & out all night, and made coffee this morning (with freshly burr-ground beans, of course), our batteries returned to 100% charged before noon. No generator required!These are some fellow long-term campers, in a more congested section of long-term visitor BLM land, just south of Quartzsite, Arizona.We took a drive today to some of the free camping areas on BLM land around Quartzsite. This one to the west is called “Dome Rock”. No assigned parking: Just choose your preferred view.Most people have at least one solar panel. This camper has at least 9 large panels to keep his coach energized!At Quartzsite, RVs come in all shapes and sizes. Here’s another combination.Hey ass – get off the road! Betty & I encountered a number of wild donkeys before we left Lake Pleasant. At Quartzsite, one also never quite knows what you are about to see in this quirky community. More later…
