Quartzsite 2020

1/13/2020 – 1/27/2020 – Monday morning we packed up and headed west. Today's destination is Quartzsite AZ where we will be boon-docking in the desert. This is our third winter in Quartzsite. We will stay at least two weeks if not a little more as we will have a few extra days at the end of the two weeks before we can get into Fortuna De Oro RV Resort in Yuma where we have reservations for February and March. We headed west through Tucson then up to Casa Grande then west on I-8 to Gila Bend. The section of I-8 west of Casa Grande is one of my favorite drives with lots of desert vegetation and saguaro cactus. At Gila Bend we headed north on highway 85 then west on I-10. We arrived at our spot at the Escapee Chapters 6 & 21 gathering on Plamosa Road around 4:00. Just in time for happy hour!! This year we parked a little closer to the main group but still had a nice view out our our windows.

Escapee Chapter 6 is the Michigan Chapter and 21 is one of the Arizona Chapters. A lot of these folks we met at the Benson Escapees SKP park. We enjoyed lots of time visiting around the campfire.

On Friday, the 17th, we drove over to Blythe California to attend the BlytheBluegrass Festival. We spent the entire day there enjoying the music.

One day a group of us drove up to Parker to go to The Desert Bar. The "Nellie E Saloon" (DESERT BAR) is situated in the Buckskin Mountains, in Parker, Arizona, on land that was an old mining camp. To reach it you have to drive on 6 miles of bumpy gravel back road. The saloon is totally off grid and is powered with solar. All material and supplies are hauled in over the gravel road. We spent a pleasant few hours there and enjoyed soda and a burger.

We also went to the big RV Show a few times and purchased a couple of electric bikes. They are fold-able and have large 4” tires for off roading. The first time we took them out on an extended ride we tried them in various terrain such as the rocky desert as well as the UTV trail. Dennis took a spill trying to cross from one tire track to another on the UTV trail. He was not seriously hurt, just scraped his knee and his pride. We are hoping they will work well in Yuma to take short trips to the grocery store as well as back home in Wisconsin.

In past years we joined the Quartzsite Gem and Mineral Club and took various classes. This year we opted not to join but we found a small craft store that had some beginner wire wrapping classes. One week Dennis took one and the next week I took the class. We both made some copper earrings. I liked the ones he made better than mine but we both learned some wire wrapping techniques.

January 25^th was a fun day with the group as we had pot luck brunch in the morning to celebrate the birthday of another Escapee member who could not make it this year. Jack's birthday was that day and he and his wife Rita are from Alaska. They used to winter here in Arizona but are not coming down anymore. Later in the day there was a Chapter 21 meeting then they started making Polar Bear drinks with some of the leftovers from the Polar Bear party. Later that day Bruce fried fish for fish tacos. It was a great day with lots of laughs and shared memories. However I think they made the Polar Bear drinks a little strong as we had 4 or 5 people fall down. They blamed it on the rocky terrain. Wink, wink!

Unfortunately Dennis did not get to partake in the festivities as he was sick. He came down with a fever on Thursday night and was pretty sick. He started feeling better late Saturday afternoon and by Sunday was finally over the worst of it.

The weather was really great as we had many days of sunshine with highs in the 60's and 70's. The nights were cool with lows in the 30's and 40's. There was only one or two cloudy days and even had a little rain one night.

Where we are parked: Quartzsite AZ – Boon-docking on BLM land off of Plamosa Road (33.767682,-114.170637).

Boon-docking in Quartzsite

Blythe Bluegrass Festival

The Desert Bar

Electric Bikes

Ouch!

Earrings - Dennis made the ones on the left.

 Hanging out in the desert

Benson AZ Drives and Rides

12/31/2019 – 1/12/2020 – We stayed two weeks at the SKP park catching up with friends and enjoying activities at the park. Some of the highlights included New Years Eve party, enjoying a couple of the bands on Friday and Saturday nights as well as helping at the Polar Bear Party.

One day we checked out the Amerind Museum in Dragoon. This is a museum, art gallery, and research center dedicated to archaeology, Native cultures, and Western art. There were lots a native American artifacts from both north and south America housed in a really nice building. Admission was $8 for seniors which included the adjoining art gallery that featured southwestern artists.

Another day we drove to Patagonia to the High Spirits Flutes Factory and Showroom. I was having a problem with one of my flutes so we thought they could help me out. After arriving, Dan let us into the showroom and after looking at my flute and adjusting the fetish it worked perfectly. So simple. I also purchased another flute. Go figure!. It is a Walnut bass flute in the key of D. After leaving Patagonia we went to Sonoita and stopped at the Copper Brothel for lunch. From there we headed south on highway 83. We stopped at Parker Lake National Forest Campground then continued south on a dirt road. We were not sure where we were going to end up. We reached a place called Montezuma Pass. From there it was just a short drive down the mountain to Sierra Vista.

I also got the opportunity to go riding with a couple from the park. They found out there is a stable at Fort Huachuca that is open to the public. So on Saturday, January 4th, we took the two hour guided sunset ride at Buffalo Corral Stables. It was a great ride into the foothills of the Huachuca Mountains. It got a little chilly toward the end but it was a great ride. We found out, after taking a short riding test, they will let you take the horses out without a guide. Wow! Very unusual for a public riding stable.

Where we are parked: Saguaro SKP Co-op RV Park – Benson Arizona – Site 182. This is an Escapees SKP Coop park. Most of the sites are leased by members with several guest sites available as well. We were put on a lease holders site that has made their site available for transient guests. The lease sites are huge and many of them have a large sheds or casitas on them as well as a spot to park your RV and vehicles. Besides the many full hookup sites there are overnight dry camping sites as well. We paid for two weeks plus $20.66 for electricity. We used our solar part of the time so we did not get a large electric bill.

Escapee Members: Daily $25.00, including cable TV. (Electricity and tax not included.)

Non-Escapee Members: Daily $30.00, including cable TV. (Electricity and tax not included.)

Weekly $130.00 (Just $18.57 per day!). (Electricity and tax not included.)

Monthly $365.00 (Just $11.97 per day!). (Electricity and tax not included.)

Saguaro SKP Co-op RV Park

Site 182

New Years Eve Party

Polar Bear Party

Dennis and Jeff serving wings.

Dennis and Cheryl at the wings table.

Drive to Montezuma's Pass

Buffalo Corral Stables

Waiting for our rides

Gail Lenney

Mike Lenney

Gail and Mike

Mike, Cheryl and Gail

My horse Trinity

El Paso and Benson

12/28/2019 – 1/30/2020 - After saying our goodbyes to Terri and Mike we continued our journey west. It was at least a 6 hour drive to El Paso so we planned to go as far as Van Horn, four hours, then El Paso the next day. Shortly after leaving Comstock we encountered a stiff head wind and along with gaining elevation our gas mileage for the day was around 8 mpg. We had been averaging over 10 most of the trip so this was significantly lower. We arrived in Wild West RV Park in Van Horn TX in mid afternoon. We picked a site but when Dennis went to hook up the sewer he found the sewer pipe full of water. Had to move to another site then all was good.

We both woke up before sunrise, unusual for us, so decided to head out and make the 2 hour drive to El Paso to Sunland Park Racetrack andCasino. We hoped to get one of the RV spots right next to the racetrack as they had live racing on Sunday. We pulled in around 9:00 and what luck! The spot closest to the track was open! We quickly set up then went into the Casino for breakfast. We were able to watch the Packer game while the races were going on. How awesome!

The next day we hooked up and drove 267 to the Saguaro SKP RV Park in Benson AZ. After setting up we had plenty of time to make 4:00 social hour. We were welcomed by everyone and had a wonderful time catching up with old friends and meeting new.

Where we are parked: Wild West RV Park – Van Horn, TX – Full Hook-up – Regular Cost is $30 but they give a discount for Good Sam. We paid $27. We stayed here last year when it as called Desert Willow RV Park. However it has changed ownership and has been renamed.

Where we are parked: Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino – El Paso TX – $15 per night - 8 - Electric/water sites in the parking lot adjacent for the racetrack.

Wild West RV Park

Sunland Racetrack RV Park