TODAY WE MET MIKE & JIM:)) …… BUT NOT JANNA & ELLIE:((

SATURDAY MORNING SUNRISE

We started out with a semi-sunny morning and another in a series of fiery sunrises.  Needless to say I was out & about with my camera....in my jammies.  Donna, from CAVE DWELLINGS blogs about her efforts at the HICKIWAN TRAILS RV PARK to capture sunrises & sunsets dodging inconspicuously about outside in her jammies too.  Problem she has is that they have neighbors all around.  Problem I have is that I'm outside with my mismatched tops & bottoms, old green beltless house coat, blown out running shoes & hair on upside down.  I'm quite a wreck in the morning & it really doesn't get much better after that.  If the dog catcher came by I would be toast:((  So Donna, consider yourself lucky over there at Hickiwan:))

THE PALM CANYON HIKE IS THERE AT THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN RANGE

Blogging friends of ours are boondocked over near Bouse so we thought we'd amble up that way this morning & have us a look at the area.  Have heard other RV folks talking about it so figured we had better slip over that way while we're still here.  Headed north out of Quartzite about 9:30 & while Kelly was fielding a Deerpark Lodge cell phone call I missed Plomosa road heading east to Bouse.  Ended up on the southeastern outskirts of Parker having to turn left & head east to Bouse from there.  A much longer route than the Plomosa Road route for sure.  Not much in Bouse so we hung a right turn at the northern end of Plomosa Rd & worked our way back to where Mike & Janna from TIN TEPEE/LOG CABIN said they were.  About 3 or 4 miles southwest of Bouse we saw the colored ribbons on a shrub so new where to turn into the desert & head north.  From reading their blog for the past year or more we knew what their rig looked like plus their friends were also boondocked out there with a 40' Tiffin.  Hard to miss a 40 footer in the desert!!

  

BREAKFAST IN THE MORNING DESERT & ADDING OUR LAST COUPLE JUGS OF WATER TO THE ONBOARD TANK

Spotted the big coach OK but no sign of Mike & Janna's rig.  Pulled in past the Tiffin & swung round Mike & Janna's car back to the 40 footer where a fellow was already outside to see who the intruders were.  "You must be Al & Kelly from the Bayfield Bunch" he said as he approached the car with a big handshake.  And that is how we met Jim from JUSTRAVELIN.  Said Mike had taken their motorhome into Bouse to dump the tanks & pick up some water.  Jim's wife Ellie & Mike's wife Janna had taken Jim's Saturn & headed into Parker to do a little of, or a lot of.......shopping:))

Jim had us come inside where we met Bojangles & Jazzy their mini Schnauzers.  Quite a pair of rascals.  Y'know, sometimes it's just best not to go in other people's rigs.  This is a top of the line 40' Phaeton diesel coach & it's very, very, nice.  Kind of makes our rig look a bit like something the Beverly Hillbilly's first took to California years ago.  Jim was a very gracious host showing us around the coach.  His personality matched the motorhome.....very nice:))  Chatted about this & that for awhile until Mike came rumbling up the dusty road with the Beaver on his way back from Bouse.  Wasn't long & we finally met Mike as well & as expected, another fine & friendly RV fellow.  Mike is one of those guys with a twinkle in his eye, big sideburns & a happy easy going face topped with a white cowboy hat.  It was a picture of Mike in their blog walking along underneath his hat one day awhile back that gave me the idea for the type of new cowboy hat I was looking for.

 

JIM, KELLY, BOJANGLES, & JAZZ

It was great chatting with Jim & Mike & we all marveled at how small the RVing world is.  People they knew we knew & vice versa.  Laurie & Odel's SEMI TRUE TALES name came up.  Doug & Joanne from LIVING OUR DREAM were common friends.  Although we haven't met Mark & Dortha Hall of RVING WITH POPPA their names are familiar to us & they have spent quite a bit of time traveling with Jim & Ellie.  It always amazes me how so many traveling RV'ers seem to know or have heard of each other.  It's quite a small world out here on the road.  And it's the blogging RV'ers who are mainly in tune with everything & each other.

LOOKED LIKE RAIN OVER THERE IN QUARTZITE AT THE BASE OF THAT DISTANT MOUNTAIN RANGE

I could see the sky was getting darker over Quartzite way & I knew we had left windows open in our rig for the dogs so with the threat of rain evident we had to get on our way.  Janna & Ellie hadn't made it back from Parker yet so we bid adieu to Mike & Jim without meeting the ladies.  With some handshakes, some photos, & some increasing raindrops, we were into our car & making fast tracks for home, but the rains beat us to it.  A quick stop in Quartzite for groceries & gas & we were heading south for the La Paz Valley.  At least we had windshield wipers & a roof over our heads & that's more I can say for the poor guys on a couple motorcycles we had in front of us.  Been there, done that, not nice!!

   

THAT’S JIM IN THE BLUE SHIRT & MIKE UNDERNEATH THE WHITE COWBOY HAT  (click pics to enlarge)

We got off lucky with only some rain coming in the smaller kitchen window onto the counter & not the other window on my bed.  The sky's grew darker & the rains continued steadily for the rest of the day.  It made it easier for me get some computer things done & I was able to upload yesterday's Kofa mountain palm tree hike photos into a web album.  IN SEARCH OF THE KOFA PALMS  When you open the album try clicking on the 'Slideshow' feature.  The majority of the photos are captioned as well.

CASTLE DOME MOUNTAINS SOUTHWEST OF THE KOFA MOUNTAINS

Weatherman is calling for more rain tomorrow so maybe I'll get to see the washouts with water running through them finally.  By the deep cut washouts across the roads etc, they sure must have some powerful water run offs in these parts.  Depending on the weather tomorrow, we might take a day trip to the Castle Dome Museum down Yuma way.  We'll see....................................

GROANER'S CORNER:((  It's frustrating when you reach the age & stage of life where you know all the answers but nobody bothers to ask you the questions anymore.

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

A LITTLE MAGIC IN THE KOFA MOUNTAINS

KELLY LOOKS BACK ON OUR CLIMB FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE CANYON

Spent the morning doing one of my absolute all time favorite things.  Walking quietly along a beautiful mountain trail.  We had heard the Palm Canyon Road south of Quartzite led into the Kofa mountains where a short uphill half mile rock scramble brought one to a narrow canyon high up on a rock faced wall.  In that barely accessible canyon were reported to be about 40 palm trees.

SAGUARO’S STAND IN SILENT SALUTE TO THE DISTANT KOFA MOUNTAINS

First of all though I had better get my mountains straightened out.  A few days ago I called the hauntingly beautiful jagged Kofa mountains, the Castle Domes.  That was wrong.  The Castle Dome range is further south along the highway towards Yuma.  I have taken photos of the Kofa mountains every time we have been to Quartzite but this morning was the first time we ever went to the Kofa's & actually drove right up to them, touched them, and hiked right into them.

THE DESERT FLOOR FLORA CHANGES AS WE GAIN ALTITUDE

We left our campsite around 9:30 after another nice desert walk this morning.  The turnoff for Palm Canyon road was about a 20 minute drive south of us.  Left turned off highway 95 & headed east on the gravel & slightly washboardy road.  Hazy mountains loomed closer as the Saguaro cactus became more numerous & the rocky landscape began filling with prickly cholla plants.  The rugged Kofa mountains were absolutely majestic in the morning sun as we followed a winding road right up to the face of the mountains themselves.  A parking lot marked the end of motorized traffic & from there it was boots on the ground for the climb to the palms.

HEADING UP THE TRAIL IN SEARCH OF THE PALMS

I enjoy driving through scenic places but to actually get out & physically hike into those scenic places has got to be one of the greatest things.  I cannot put into words the feelings I have when heading up a rocky mountain trail with towering & shadowy rock formations all around.  Blue skies high above with Saguaro cactus, Palo Verde trees, & greenery along the trail.  Cactus wren calls echoing from the canyon walls with the occasional eagle overhead.  There are bighorn sheep in these mountains………& there is quiet.  Not a sound.  A whisper is almost an intrusion into these serene surroundings & it is one of the reasons we prefer not to hike with others or in a group.  It is the peacefulness of nature that we seek on these hikes.  It is the beauty I try to connect with in my camera lens.  I can't do that when surrounded by talking & distracting people.

PALO VERDE TREES ADD GREENERY TO THE CANYON

We walked & clambered our way along the narrow rock strewn pathway leading ever upwards into the narrow dark canyon stopping for photos & to marvel at the wonderment all around us.  At one point Kelly mentioned that it was like walking in a Harry Potter movie.  Any moment we expected to round a corner & there in the distance high atop a distant slightly cloud shrouded bluff....Hogwarts itself. 

THE TRAIL ENDED JUST BEYOND THIS POINT

I saw the small wooden sign before I saw the palms.  The sign simply said 'Palms' with an arrow pointing slightly upward.  High on the other side of the close canyon wall was a long narrow vertical canyon in itself & in it were the palm trees in a long single line.  Had the sign not been there we would have walked right by without ever seeing them.  We briefly contemplated the rugged hike down, across a boulder strewn wash, & then up a steep 200 foot climb to the palms themselves but considering our limitations decided against it.  I still think I could do it ok though.  We silently sat here on the rocks for awhile, each lost in our own thoughts.  We soaked up the magnificence & tranquility of our surroundings..........and then we heard voices!!

    

THE PALMS ARE HIGH UP IN THE CANYON WALL  (click pics to enlarge)

Some folks from Washington State came on up the trail from the parking lot & stopped to admire the palms.   We all had ourselves a little bit of a chin wag before Kelly & I started back down the rocky trail.  As mentioned before, descending a trail is generally always harder than going up.  Especially hard on aging knees.  We stopped a few times on the way down trying to figure out if our new Delorme GPS system actually knew where it was but we obviously have not made it to first base yet in understanding how this little techno wizard of a gizmo works.

 

THE WASHINGTON STATE FOLKS

We were back to the rig around 2 & I spent a big part of what was left of the day just kind of dozing off here & there from all that great exercise this morning.  Wished we would do more of that sort of thing.  Great for not only the body but for the mind as well.  I sometimes feel we waste way to much of our southwest time doing too darn much of nothing.  Too much nothing stuff & not enough nature stuff!!  Too much time in the people world & not enough time in Mother Nature's world.  Some people are most comfortable being around other people.  I am most comfortable being where I was this morning................10-4!!

STOPPING TO CHECK THE DELORME GPS

I have too many photos to put in the blog tonight so I will have to make a special effort & put this morning's hike into a web album & I plan to have that album online by tomorrow night.  Wish me luck................

   

KELLY IS DWARFED BY THE MIGHTY KOFA MOUNTAINS

GROANER'S CORNER:((  The only time the world beats a path to your door is if you're in the bathroom!!

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

LUNCH WITH PETER & PATTY FROM RAINBOW ACRES

THE OLD YUMA ROAD LOOKING NORTH….Back in the 1800’s this would have been a horse path with probable wagon wheel ruts marking an old dusty trail from Yuma heading north to other dusty little western towns.  We are parked just a few hundred feet from the road & at night we can hear the creaking of old ghostly wagon trains on the trail heading for the gold fields in California & Arizona.   We can hear the galloping of horses & the plodding of mules mixed with the shouts of trail bosses, the grumbling of wagoneers, & the bumpy chatter of children in wagons.

                               

FELLOW BOONDOCKERS WELL SPACED OUT IN THE DESERT

If Max hadn't woke me up at 2 a.m I wouldn't have been up & on the computer until 5 in the morning before going back to bed again & re-getting up at 7:30.  Not exactly my idea of a good night's sleep but at least I was able to get some long overdue things caught up in my Picasa photo editing program.

                            

Sunny morning with a warming breeze as we watched 3 more rigs pull  out around 10.  The desert is really opening up.  Bit of a clean up in the motorhome, read some blogs, soaked up a bit of sun, & just basically loafed around until noon. 

THAT IS RAINBOW ACRES IN THE BACKGROUND ABOUT 3 MILES AWAY BUT THE TELEPHOTO LENS PIC MAKES IT APPEAR CLOSER

Last year while parked here in this same spot a couple fellows rode in out of the desert one morning on their ATV's.  Figured they were going to take issue of the way I was flying our flags, but no, turns out one of the fellas was a blog follower.  From my description of where we were he knew where to find us.  That is how we met Pete & his neighbor Ed.  Tuesday when we returned from downtown Quartzite there was a note stuck in our door from Peter & his wife Patty saying they had dropped by to say hello.  Guess Pete’s still following the Bayfield Bunch.  Peter & Patty live about 3 miles north of our location.

A few emails whizzed back & forth & we agreed to do lunch today so P & P picked us up at noon & we all headed into Quartzite for lunch at the same place we were the day before...Bad Boy.

                            

PETER IN THE RED T-SHIRT SLIPS AROUND THE TABLES WHILE PATTY & KELLY CHECK OUT THE MENU

Like all RV couples we have met, Peter & Patty are a charming couple with a lot of RV miles under their belts over the years & from talking to them I can tell we share a lot of the same interests regarding RVing & people in general.  Peter is the laid back one of the two & Patty shares my impatience with computers. 

                                

KELLY TAKES A DEERPARK LODGE CALL JUST BEFORE THE FOOD ARRIVES  (click on pics to enlarge)

Had a nice lunch on Bad Boy's shaded patio.  P & P  have a winter place located in Rainbow Acres just a few miles southwest of Quartzite.  We can actually see the development where they live across the desert to the north of us.  They have their 38' Safari Class A motorhome parked on a lot for the winter months & travel up into Washington State during the summer volunteering as camp hosts, etc, at various parks.  They will return again this summer to Jarrell Cove State Marine Park in Glacier National Park.

A 700mm TELEPHOTO SHOT OF RAINBOW ACRES.  THE SMALL WHITE RETANGLE LEFT OF CENTER IN THE MOUNTAIN IS AN 18 WHEELER ON I-10 HEADING WEST INTO CALIFORNIA.

Just a few days after Peter & Ed dropped in that morning last year another fellow blogger tracked us down & we got to meet John from JOHN & BRENDA'S INCREDIBLE ADVENTURE.  Another one of those good RV people:))

                                

ED & PETE IN JANUARY 09                                      JOHN IN JANUARY 09

Our last closest neighbor left this afternoon around 3 so the nearest rig to us now is about a quarter to half a mile away.  Nice respectable buffer zone I'd say.  Sure is nice to look out & not see any rigs on 3 of our 4 sides.  Maybe we'll stay here until April now.  Ok, ok, just kidding.  Our next stop will probably be Borrego Springs in California soon.  For sure there will be lots of room over there in the wide open desert as well.

A VERY RELAXING DAY:))

Tomorrow we may head south down the highway a bit with the car then head east on Palm Canyon Road to see what we can see.  We hear it's a nice scenic drive back up there in the Kofa mountains.  Saturday we might have a look around the Bouse area & Sunday we just might boogie west for Borrego:))  Of course all those things hinge on the word...........'might:))'  No rules, no regulations, no problem!!

OLD YUMA ROAD LOOKING SOUTH TOWARDS YUMA MANY MILES AWAY

GROANER'S CORNER:((  While making rounds, a doctor points out an X-ray to a group of medical students.'As you can see,' she says, 'the patient limps because his left fibula and tibia are radically arched. Morris, what would you do in a case like this?''Well,' ponders the student, 'I suppose I'd limp too.'

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.