RV-Dreams Journal

Another Month Gone By - (Quartzsite, AZ)

I went back and added a few photos to yesterday's "Propane Lessons" entry.  Thought it might help.  :)

Then we got some interesting news.  The folks that were supposed to be our camphost teammates at Arches in March & April had to suddenly back out.

Since we knew Robbie & Alice were interested in camphosting there at some point, we immediately checked to see if they were interested.  They had visited Arches when we were there last year, and Robbie had even done a couple rounds with us to see what we did.

After some pondering, they agreed to join us and we shot off an email to our volunteer coordinator.  Cool.

Most of the rest of the day, I worked on January financials while Linda and the gals had another beading session.  I didn't get finished, so I'll have to wrap that up tomorrow or Monday.

During the day, Doug & JoAnn arrived.  They had left Boomerville to get a propane heater installed.  Since they had to pack up anyway, they decided to come join the gang here for a few days.

We have lots of room here, so any RV-Dreamers in the area that want to join us are more than welcome.  :)

Late in the afternoon I went to town.  I filled up the Jeep for Linda's trip to Benson tomorrow and stopped to pick up our new sign from Crraazy Jack's Redwood Signs.  It's just a little stand on the main street.

We went with a pretty plain design, but we like it.  :)

They do a great job and have fast turnarounds.  Adding color takes a little longer.  But most folks can get their signs in an hour to an hour and a half.

The top sign was $25.  The RV-Dreams sign was $15 plus $7 for the color.  So our total was $47.  They have a really nice selection of sizes and designs for under $50.

After I returned to camp, the group gathered under the bright blue skies for fish tacos and some mexican side dishes.

And Pam & JoAnn both made brownies for dessert.  I might have had more than my fair share of those.  :)

By the way, since the stained glass windows seemed to be a popular topic, here are some pics of the various designs in the group.

I didn't make everyone shut their doors, so some of the photos are with doors open, and many of them are in the shade.  :)

Most, if not all, were purchased in Los Algodones, Mexico at various shops and stands.  Prices ranged from $37.50 to $50.00 depending on the design and vendor.

I didn't go, so I can't give directions.  And upon inquiry, I was told there really weren't any shop names to help either.  :)

On one hand, I can't believe how fast January went.  On the other hand, I can't believe we've only been gone from the SKP Saguaro park for three weeks.  It seems like ages since we were there.

Linda leaves tomorrow for several days of fun with the beading ladies in Benson.  She showed me how to stand on my head to light the pilot light in the oven in case I wanted to heat up a frozen pot pie or something.  :)

Other than that, I've got plenty of milk, bread, lunchmeat, cheese, brats, peanut butter, jelly, and frozen waffles.  I think I can survive for at least a few days.  :)

Have fun Honey, but hurry back!  :)

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January Financial Summary

January 2009 Results

Campground Fees $327.36 (10.56 per day) - Budget $450.00

Averaged a little over $16 per day for the first twenty days of the month.  Then we spent the last eleven days of the month boondocking for free on BLM land in Quartzsite.

RV Clubs $0.00 - Budget $0.00

RV Insurance $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Propane $53.58 - Budget $40.00

Cell Phones $85.60 - Budget $90.00

Satellite Internet $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Note:  Satellite internet is not included in our regular expenses.  We now classify it as a business expense.  We paid $798 in December 2008 for all of 2009. 

RV Taxes/Registration $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Satellite TV $79.04 - Budget $85.00

RV Maintenance $0.00 - Budget $50.00

Diesel $90.00 - Budget $150.00

We drove the truck 452 miles in January - 429 while towing and 23 locally.

Gas $169.00 - Budget $150.00

We drove the Jeep 1,580 miles in January - 432 while traveling and 1,148 doing some local exploring.

Truck Maintenance $0.00 - Budget $35.00

Jeep Maintenance $0.00 - Budget $20.00

Truck Insurance $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Jeep Insurance $318.21 - Budget $320.00

Six months' premium.

Truck Taxes/Registration $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Jeep Taxes/Registration $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Groceries & Dining Out $453.69 ($14.64 per day) - Budget $450.00

Our Groceries & Dining Out budget for 2009 is the same as for 2008.  It's based on $12 per day per month for groceries PLUS $90 for dining out. 

Laundry, Clothing, Hair Care $54.71 - Budget $75.00

Entertainment $335.52 ($10.82 per day) - Budget $200.00

Most of the difference was the $90 to go to Kartchner Caverns State Park and take both caverns tours. 

Insurance - Health, Life, Umbrella, Etc. $195.07 - Budget $200.00

Monthly health insurance premium. 

Medical & Dental Expenses $0.00 - Budget $50.00

Miscellaneous $93.11 - Budget $150.00

Emergencies/Budget Cushion $0.00 - Budget $300.00

Totals $2,254.89 ($72.74 per day) for normal living expenses - Budget $2,515.00

Totals with Emergencies/Budget Cushion $2,254.89 - Budget $2,815.00.

We were $260 under budget in normal living expenses.  A good start to the year.  :)

For a look at the numbers for January 2009, go to Our 2009 Actual Expenses. To see our budget month-by-month click on Our 2009 Budget.

On the business side, we had net income of $81.  That won't get us very far.  :)

Linda's DreamLife Creations had $310 in bead purchases with no sales.  She's already working on remedying that.  :) 

Our business income & expense summary statement is available at Our 2009 Business Financial Summary page.

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Propane Lessons - (Quartzsite, AZ)

Well, it was a pretty typical morning, except Linda woke up feeling like she had a cold coming on.

That really bummed her out since she is supposed to drive herself to Benson on Sunday and attend the gem show in Tucson a few days next week.  We weren't really sure if it was a cold or sinuses.  But whatever it was, she was determined to fight it off.  :)

Recently, we have been having propane issues.  We weren't getting anything out of one of our cylinders - the one in the compartment on the right.

Today, the cylinder on the left ran out.  Naturally, since I knew everything on the left was working, I moved the right cylinder (which I could tell was still at least half full by the weight) to the left side.  I hooked it up, turned it on, and got nothing.

Now I'm thinking it has to be the valve in that cylinder.  Linda & I discussed it, and I decided to take both tanks in to the RV Pit Stop.

When I got there, I explained my situation and they did a test on the half full cylinder.  No problem with the valve ... of course.

They filled my other cylinder and sold me two pigtails - the hoses and connectors that go from the propane cylinder to the regulator.  They insisted that the ones that come with RVs, the ones with the big green plastic "nuts" that connect to the propane cylinders, are not allowing enough propane through.  "We see it all the time" they said.

I got home and started to replace one of the pigtails.  Well, the ones they sold me didn't have the right size fitting, so that wasn't going to work.  Turns out that was a good thing.  We'll see why later.

I put the full cylinder, the "good" one, back on the left side, connected it, opened the valve, and ... nothing.  Sheesh.

I saw Robbie walking our way, so I asked for some help to troubleshoot our problem.  He and Butch and some others came over.  Robbie kept telling me that there is safety mechanism in the cylinder valves that sometimes cuts off the flow.

He took the "good" cylinder out, put it back in, connected it and turned the valve very slowly.  There was the hissing noise that I hadn't been hearing.  Propane was flowing, and Linda tested the stove and fridge.  Yep, everything was now working.

"You mean I was just turning the thing on too fast?" was my question.  "For three and a half years, I've been doing it the same way, and now I'm turning the valve too quickly?"  I had to find out exactly why it was important to turn the valve on slowly.  More on that later.

For those that aren't familiar, most fifth wheels these days have two propane cylinders.  Some, like ours, have the cylinders on opposite sides of the trailer, and some have them on the same side.

In either case, the cylinders are both connected to a two-stage regulator with an automatic "cut-over" switch.

There is a visible switch or lever that can be turned that designates either of the cylinders as the "primary" cylinder.  In the above photo, the lever is turned to the right-hand connection, making the cylinder connected to that hose the "primary".

When the primary cylinder runs out of propane, the automatic "cut-over", which is not visible, allows propane to flow from the other cylinder.  The visible switch or lever does not move - that has to be switched manually.

Okay, so there is an indicator on top of the regulator that tells if the "primary" cylinder is full or half full or empty.  If it is all green, it is full.

Half green is half full.

And all red is empty.  Remember, this is for the "primary" cylinder - the one to which the lever is pointing - only.

So, when Robbie put the full cylinder on the left side compartment and turned the lever to make that cylinder "primary", the indicator showed all green - just as it should.

We put the half full cylinder in the right compartment and turned it on slowly until we heard the hissing.  Then we turned it on all the way.  I turned the manual switch to make that cylinder the "primary" and the indicator went to half green, half red like it should.  Linda once again tested, and everything was working correctly.

Okay, problem solved.  But I wanted to understand it more.

I started my research.

I first wanted to find out how the new OPD (Overfilling Protection Device) valves on the cylinders (required since 2002) came into play.  Here is a pretty good link for that topic:  OPD Cylinder Valves on Propane101.com.

The gist of that discussion is twofold.  First, the OPD valves are designed to cut off filling of a tank at 80% full to allow for expansion.  That's been the requirement all along, but these valves ensure the requirement is met.

Second, these valves prevent the flow of propane in or out unless the cylinder is connected to an appropriate hose and connection.  Opening the valve (turning the knob) does nothing unless the cylinder is properly connected.

But this website makes it clear that the OPD valve itself is NOT the culprit in our situation.  The valve is not designed to restrict flow OUT of the cylinder once it is properly connected and in use.

Hmm.  So there must be something else.  Eventually, I found some more information.

Here is a link to the best information I could find:  Propane Safety & Use by Gary Motley, Master Certified RV Technician.

The important information to me related to the "pigtail" and the big green "nut".

"Let’s talk about a couple of safety features on these new pigtails. Both features are parts of the big green nut.

The first is a black thermal-sensitive bushing found just behind the green nut. If this bushing is ever in a fire with temperatures between 240°F and 300°F, it melts and allows the brass nipple inside the nut to move back about ¼ inch, which closes a small piston inside the cylinder valve totally shutting off the flow of propane. This innovative feature will help prevent fires or explosions.

The second new safety feature is called a “flow-limiting-device.” Its purpose is to restrict the flow of escaping gas if there is an excessive leak in the RV propane system. This second “flow-limiting-device” feature and how it works forms the core of the secret! Almost every time the cylinder valve is opened, a small ball in the center of the brass nipple (inside the green nut) is pushed forward into a brass seat. This seat doesn’t totally shut off the gas. By design, it allows a small amount of gas (by-pass flow) to go into the RV propane system. If everything in the propane system is closed and in the off position and there are no leaks, the by-pass flow builds up a back pressure. This equalizes the pressure in the ball back of the seat and allows unrestricted flow through the system. All this happens in about five seconds and the user doesn’t know it’s happening, appliances light, furnaces and water heaters run as normal.

Now lets look at the same system but with the oven control left in the pilot on position. Again the cylinder valve is opened, the ball is pushed into the seat, the by-pass flow goes through the system but this time it can’t equalize because the flow continues out through the open oven pilot. The user goes inside and starts cooking dinner. Two burners on the range top are lit and everything seems okay until the furnace comes on. At that point, the flames on the range top are drawn down and the furnace won’t ignite, everything seems starved out. The reason? We don’t have full-unrestricted cylinder flow to run our system, we only have the small by-pass flow which is far too small to feed the appliances trying to operate.

HOW TO FIX THE SITUATION: Turn off all the appliances, turn everything to the closed and off position, wait about 15 seconds. If the system is closed and tight, the back pressure builds up, equalizes and feeds unrestricted cylinder flow to the regulator for normal operation."

Now that makes sense to me!  And it describes the symptoms we had been experiencing.  :)

We were not allowing enough back pressure to build up and the little brass ball was staying in its "seat" and restricting our flow.

When we travel, we turn all the propane off.  When we arrive at a destination, we turn the propane back on before we turn on any appliances requiring propane.  The back pressure builds like it should and everything works fine.

Here, I was turning on propane while we had propane appliances turned on and the back pressure was not building up.  But we had turned off everything by the time Robbie came over to help, so it all worked perfectly when he connected the cylinder and turned on the propane.

So now I'm not convinced that turning the propane on slowly is the magic answer.  But I found several sites that say to do that, and it certainly can't hurt.  :)

Okay, so I usually leave one propane tank on and the other turned off so I know for sure when one of them is empty.  That kind of defeats the purpose of the automatic cut-over, but I didn't want to have to check the red/green indicator every day.  And if you don't check that, propane could be coming from the "secondary" cylinder.  If you're not careful, you can run out completely.

One problem with my method is we have appliances running when the one tank runs out.  I have, in the past, turned on the other tank and we've experienced the low flow problem.  I always chalked it up to cold weather or the time it took for the lines to pressurize.  Now we know.  :)

Most people leave both cylinders open and let the regulator and automatic cut-over do their job.  They check the red/green indicator often so they know when the "primary" cylinder runs out.  Then the switch the lever to the other cylinder so it is the "primary".

Three and half years on the road and we're still learning.  It certainly helps us troubleshoot our own issues when we know how things work.  :)

Linda got dressed and we hopped in the Jeep.  I took the new pigtails back and got a refund.

Then we went to the redwood sign place in town and ordered signs to hang on our rig.  We dispensed with our first set of signs long ago.

Our new sign will be ready tomorrow.  On the way back home, we made a quick stop at the Satellite Advantage in town.  Scott from Dustyfoot.com is there and I wanted to meet him.  He is a reputable mobile satellite installer that could be a good resource for the Forum.

I also checked the price of DirecTV satellite dishes.  Since Jack won't be joining us in Arches and we can't borrow his extra one while we are in the cabin, we'll have to find one somewhere.  :)

After that, we drove out beyond our campsite on Plomosa Road to some of the more scenic spots on the other side of the mountains for future reference.

Back home, I returned lots of emails and Linda got an informal beading group together.

I went out and sat with the group for awhile in afternoon during "happy hour".  As it got dark, everyone dispersed for dinner.  I took a twilight shot.

Linda was feeling better and went back out for the campfire, but I had gotten a shower and didn't want to end up needing another one from the smoke.

It was an educational day.  :)

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Golf, Beading, Pizza - (Quartzsite, AZ)

The plan today was golf, beading, and dinner with J.C. & Bev (Where Are J.C. and Bev?).

I drove to Salome, about 40 miles away, to play golf with J.C. ("jcw" on the Forum) while Bev drove to Quartzsite to get a beading lesson with Linda.

I arrived at the Desert Palms Golf & RV Resort around 11:00.  My first question to J.C. was "How did you find this place?"  Apparently it was recommended by someone else as an alternative to staying in Quartzsite.

We warmed up by playing the little "pitch & putt" course within the RV park.  It's nine holes and the longest hole may be 30 yards.  The whole "course" covers a rectangle smaller than a football field in the middle of a group of RV/Park Model sites.

So when the website calls it an "executive course", that's a bit of an overstatement.  As is using the term "golf" in the park's name.  :)

After our half hour warm-up, we rode to the course next door - the Sunset Links Golf Resort.  Since it is a short, flat course, we decided to skip the cart fee and carry our clubs.  We paid $18 to walk.

Now Sunset Links has an interesting layout.  It's short, but not really an executive course.  It has short par fours, one long par five, and mostly long par threes, but it is more challenging than most executive courses.

Part of the challenge is finding which hole to play next.  None of the holes are marked.  They gave us a map of the holes in the clubhouse, but we still managed to miss one hole and play one hole twice.  :)

The map showed all of the lots that were being planned around the course in the future.  It looked sort of like "build the golf course and they will come", but they weren't coming yet.  And with the golf course being in terrible shape (especially the greens), it might be tough to draw in serious golfers.

My score was horrible.  J.C. was relatively pleased with his.  :)

I'd probably chalk up at least five extra strokes to the shape of the greens, and the rest of my many extra strokes to hitting the ball in the desert and hidden washes where I wasn't supposed to be.  :)

I hit lots of shots out of rocky lies today.  Even the sand traps were rocky.  My clubs are begging me not to play there again.  :)

But J.C. and I had a good time walking and talking and enjoying the sunny day and mountain views.  When J.C. & Bev visited us in Arches back last April, we were finishing up our stint as camphosts and didn't get a chance to talk much.

It sounded like Linda and Bev enjoyed their day as well.  Stella & Roxanne joined them, and Bev made a beautiful new bracelet.  After beading, Linda rode with Bev to the bead store before they made the trek back to Salome.

J.C. and I watched a golf movie in their Country Coach motorhome while we waited for the ladies to arrive.  After carrying his clubs for 18 holes today, I'm not sure J.C. will be up for much exercise ... or walking ... tomorrow.  :)

Once Bev and Linda got back, the plan was to go out to dinner with two other couples.  Now it was getting confusing.  We had J.C. & Bev, Jim & Bev, and Jim & Kathleen.  :)

We were going to a pizza place the ladies had heard about from someone else.  However, when we arrived, we found that it wasn't a restaurant like we expected.  It was a little trailer disguised as a red caboose with no indoor seating, no servers, and no restrooms.

It did have a couple of tables in a tent and a port-a-potty out back.  That port-a-potty was important as I skipped going to the bathroom at J.C.'s because I decided to wait until we got to the "restaurant".  :)

Rather than going somewhere else, we decided to enjoy the experience.  All four couples ordered pizzas.  That was a slight problem because the caboose only had two ovens.  It was going to be a bit of a wait and there were no lights or heat in the tent.  :)

But that didn't put a damper on the experience.

We talked and laughed and shivered a little.

We lit the three lanterns so we could see our food when it got dark and get a touch of warmth.  The pizza was different, but pretty darn good.

The caboose people were good sports and played right along with us.  It was very nice of them as they were supposed to close at 6:00 and we kept them until 7:00.

Afterwards, with hugs & handshakes, Linda & I departed and drove back to our rig.  We briefly visited with the folks sitting around the campfire and then retired for the evening.

Just another whacky day in the lives of some full-timers.  :)

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Water Fill-Up, Stained Glass, Dinner, & Fire Pies - (Quartzsite, AZ)

Well, I did it again.  In the middle of the Journal entry, I accidently hit "save".  That means everyone who subscribes by email got an unfinished version of the January 27 entry.  Sorry about that.  :)

Yesterday, a few from our group made the trek down to Los Algodones, Mexico.  It seems to be one of the things RVers do while here in Quartzsite, especially if dental work is needed.  :)

However, one can also find numerous choices of stained glass window inserts for RV doors.  Linda put in an order for one - anything with a hummingbird.  :)

This morning, Robbie brought over the one they picked up for us.  I think they brought back five all together.

While he was here, Linda knew that he had his portable water bladder full and she was ready for a fill-up.  We could have gone a couple more days, but she didn't want to take any chances.

So Robbie backed his truck up to the side of our rig.  He had the full, 45 gallon Portable RV Fresh Water Tank, as Camping World calls it, in the back.

Camping World shows it sitting on top of a truck cab.  At 360 pounds when full, I'm not sure I would recommend that.  :)

Robbie has rigged up a 12-volt Harbor Freight pump and placed it inline between the bladder and the gravity fill on the RV.

He rewired the pump and added a plug so that he could just plug it into the trailer plug receptacle in the truck rather than needing to use a separate battery.  If we got one, we could just use the cable clips that come with the pump and connect to the marine battery we keep in the truck for our boat motor.

This isn't a very good picture, but the whole set-up in action looks like this.

Within a few minutes, the bladder was empty and Linda could stop worrying about running out of water in the middle of a shower.  :)

Empty, the bladder weighs five pounds and folds up to about a foot square for storage.  Beats the heck out of hooking up the rig and going back into town for more water.  :)

While Robbie & I were doing that, Linda got some details on her trip back to Benson.  Until today, we thought we would be moving on Monday and she would be going to Benson on Tuesday.

Well, now it looks like she is driving to Benson on Sunday.  So we are either moving on Saturday - we never travel on Saturdays - or we might just stay where we are for another week.  It's looking more and more like I'll just stay put.  That's certainly the easiest and cheapest option.  :)

I think several folks had planned to install their new stained glass windows on Thursday, but I'm playing golf.  So, Linda wanted me to install ours today.

Hmmm.  Looks easy enough.  I took out the numerous screws around the frame on the inside of the door.

Yep, it's just two plastic frames screwed together with a glass insert in between.  Once it was out, I got some advice from Robbie to be sure we did it right.

We removed the old sealant between the old glass and the outer frame and sealant around the outer edge of the frame itself.  Then I had to run to town to get some more silicone sealant.

Clear silicone sealant is one of those things most of us full-timers keep on hand.  But I didn't have enough for this project.

I went to the hardware store and then to the post office to ship a bird feeder.  Note to self.  Don't go to the Quartzsite post office between 11:00 and 3:00 - that's when everyone's general delivery mail is available for pick-up.  I stood in line for a half hour and the line was worse when I left.

Finally back at the rig, I laid the outer frame on the tailgate of the truck and squeezed the silicone where the new glass would go.  There are actually plastic tabs on the frame to help make sure the glass goes in the right place.  I placed the glass on the frame, making sure it would be going in the right direction, and let it set up.

Later, I came back and put sealant around the edge of the frame where it would connect with the door.  Our neighbor, Ray, held it in place while I screwed the inside frame to the outside frame.  It's definitely a two-person operation.  :)

It was one of those things that I thought was completely unnecessary, but I have to admit I kind of like it.

The blues around the edges and on the hummingbird actually match the blue swoosh on the rig decals.

It does allow more light inside and we can actually see who is knocking on our door, though they look a little "wavy" through the glass.  :)

Linda is very happy and we all know that's what really counts.  :)

Just after I got finished with that, Roy ("Roy" on the Forum) & Lowell dropped by.  More folks we had corresponded with but had not yet met.

They started full-timing in April 2007.  Though Roy has tired of blogging, you can check out the Misadventures of Roy and Lowell through Thanksgiving 2008.  :)

They had plans the rest of the day, so we didn't even sit down to chat.  But it was great meeting other RV-Dreamers.  :)

For dinner we had made plans with Don & Stella and JoAnn & Doug.  Tonight we dined out at the Grubstake Restaurant & Bar.

We had heard that the fish & chips are good, and we were advised to split a meal.  Good advice.  :)  The portions are HUGE.

During dinner, JoAnn asked about the state parks Don & I visited yesterday.  She commented that this boondocking thing spoils you.  You get used to the wide open spaces that are free, and it becomes harder to pay for sites that are so close together.  :)

Back at what's left of our circle (only ten rigs remain), Linda & I went out to join the others - just as they were all breaking up to go in for dinner.  :)

We returned to our rig and prepared to demonstrate fire pies around the evening campfire.

We had ordered the Cast Iron Round Pudgy Pie Iron Twin Pack from FirePies.com earlier this summer, but had not yet used them.  I picked up some apple, cherry, and blueberry pie filling the other day, so we were ready to give them a try.

Linda got great reviews from her hush puppies during the fish fry a couple nights ago, so folks were willing to give us a shot.  :)

Linda buttered a couple pieces of bread, sprinkled some sugar and cinnamon on them, and placed them face down in the pie irons.  She then spooned some pie filling in ...

and closed the pie irons which crimped the bread.  She trimmed the excess crust and I put the irons in the fire on the hot coals.

Having not done this before, it took us awhile to figure out how long to leave them in the fire.  After a few successes and a few blackened pies, we got them timed to about 40 seconds on each side for the best results.

We learned a little cooking spray on the irons helped them come out cleaner.  Once I flipped them out on a plate, Linda finished them off by sprinkling on some powdered sugar.  Oh, they were good.  :)

The little pies were a hit, and we had lots of fun with them.  After knocking out a loaf and a half of bread, we sat and enjoyed the campfire under the billions of stars.

Before long, we were inside and ready for bed.  It was a busy day.  :) 

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Searching For The Next Campsite - (Quartzsite, AZ)

I picked up Don a little after 9:00 and we drove north on Hwy 95.  I had planned on staying at one of the state parks on the Colorado River when we left here, but, since we are so close, I wanted to check them out first.

Also, I had heard and read about several other places to stay between Parker, AZ and Lake Havasu City, AZ.  I checked out the listings on RVParkReviews.com for Parker, Lake Havasu City, Earp, CA, and Parker Dam, CA.  We would just make a day of it and see what we could find.

We drove to Parker and then crossed the river into Earp, California.  On the California side, there is an eleven-mile Back Country Byway from Earp to the Parker Dam known as the "Parker Strip".

Within the Parker Strip are several RV "resorts" along the river and two BLM public campgrounds.  Shortly after crossing the river, we made a stop to get photos of the Colorado River and some of the RVs along the water's edge.

Across from one of the resorts was this "new" golf course.

It's across from the Emerald Cove Resort which has over 800 sites.  And they all looked too close together to us.  :)

In fact, we skipped all the "resorts" as the sites were just too crowded and the prices were pretty high.

We did stop at the two BLM campgrounds - Crossroads & Empire Landing.  Crossroads is a small little campground between the larger resorts.  It has 12 sites with about half of them along the river.  Not bad for $5 a night, but probably tough to find one of the better sites available.  And a little tight for big rigs.

The website says Empire Landing is closed.  It looked open to us although there was no one in it other than two camphosts.  It has undergone some reconstruction and there are little parking lot circles with electric and water hook-ups - for $30.  No "it" factor there.  :)

There is some nice terrain and red rocks along the Parker Strip.  It was worth the drive, but we didn't see any place we'd park our rigs.  We crossed over the Parker Dam back into Arizona.

It is the "deepest" dam in the world.

The Parker Dam creates Lake Havasu on the upper side and provides hydroelectric power on the lower side.

Being used to the reddish, muddy color water of the Colorado around Moab in the springtime, it was nice to see the clear, blue-green water along today's route.

From Parker Dam, we traveled on up toward Lake Havasu City.  On the way, we stopped at Cattail Cove State Park.  The park road winds down a canyon toward Lake Havasu.  I was liking it better already.  :)

The gatekeeper allowed us to drive in and look at the campground.  The campground didn't really have the "it" factor I was hoping for - again the sites are pretty close together and not very big.  Here is a view from the end of the campground out toward the lake.

Here is a look back up the canyon at the campground.

That site on the left is the prime site in the campground.  There are no other campsites between that one and the water.

I talked to the guy parked there and found out he is an Escapee member and a full-timer.  I got the scoop on when he is leaving and, if we time it right, we could have that site.  There are a few other decent sites, but I'd go out of my way to get that one.  :)

Here is a shot from the state park beach.

The RVs overlooking the lake are actually at the Sandpoint Marina & RV Resort next door that is accessed via a little road off to the right before the state park entrance.

We drove into there on our way out.  Yikes!  Talk about tight quarters.  Just my opinion, but the lake views aren't worth the really close neighbors and the $40 - $45 per night.  However, it is nice to have the cafe and convenience store right there if you are staying at the state park.

We drove on to Lake Havasu City.  On the way, there seemed to be quite a few boondocking sites on the exposed ridge above the highway looking down on Lake Havasu.  Not sure I want to do that, though.  Looks like the wind could be rough. 

I didn't think we would ever get to Lake Havasu State Park, but we eventually found it.  Surprisingly, it is right in town ... off Industrial Blvd.  :)

The park road does take you away from the hustle and bustle of the highway a little bit.  Once again, the gatekeeper let us in to check out the campground.

Many of the campsites are on the lake or have good lake views.

There are plenty of sites for big rigs, but there are no hook-ups.  If you need the conveniences of a larger town (everything you could need is in Lake Havasu City) and don't mind not having hook-ups, Lake Havasu State Park is just fine.

On our way out of town, Don & I stopped to have a quick lunch.  We happened to stop right next to the infamous "London Bridge".  The Lake Havasu Convention & Visitors Bureau has a great webpage on the history of London Bridge and how it ended up in Arizona.  

After a quick bite, we walked over and took some pictures.

It is a photogenic bridge.  :)

This next shot is for Linda.  I sat the camera on the ground and snapped a pic of this group of pigeons sunning on the sidewalk.  :)

Back toward Parker we drove.  We stopped and took photos at an overlook at the Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge.

It's one of five national wildlife refuges in the area.

Then we stopped at the Havasu Springs Resort.  We stopped there only because they were having a special - 3 nights camping for $30.

It's normally $50 per night, but you could get the three-night deal if you stayed and listened to a sales pitch.  We drove in to look around.  Once again, the sites were extremely close together.  Even the special price and the on-site golf course couldn't entice me.  :)

Next, we stopped at the River Island State Park north of Parker.  It's a small state park with an RV park-like campground.  It's a quaint little place and would suffice for a few days, but it's right on Hwy 95.

The last state park on our agenda was just a mile south of River Island and is a popular place - Buckskin Mountain State Park.  We were allowed to drive in and check it out.

This park seemed to have the most activities and the overall best setting.  The campground was almost full, and the sites were once again pretty close together.  Not as bad as the RV resorts, but not as spread out as we are used to in state parks.

Finally, we stopped at the La Paz County Park.  With high reviews on the RVParkReviews website and a highly acclaimed golf course across the street, I was hoping this would be the place for me to stay while Linda goes back to Benson for a few days for the Tucson Gem Show.

Wow.  I don't know how this campground got ratings of "9".  :)  To each his own, but there is no way I would stay there.  The golf course looked fantastic, but I'd rather stay somewhere else and drive in.

So, the state parks were my top choices.  Still, I wasn't really enamored with the campgrounds at any of them.  If I had to choose, Buckskin or Cattail would be my preference for setting.  However, Lake Havasu probably had the best choices of campsites for size and spacing.

This section of the Colorado River and Lake Havasu are beautiful.  And my intent was to meander up the Colorado River into Nevada and southern Utah on the way to Moab.

But, I might have to re-think our route when we leave here and look at other options.  I'm pretty picky about where we park.  For us, it's not just about a place to sleep while we take part in area activities.  :)

We made a stop at the Safeway in Parker - a very nice store by the way.  Then we headed home.

Linda, Stella, and the ladies had a beading day while we were scouting.  Sounds like they had a good time.

We sat outside and talked with some of the others before dinner.  Apparently someone had called a septic truck in.  We decided to go ahead and have our tanks pumped out while they were here.  Got that taken care of, so we should be good until we leave.

Soon, it was dinner time.  Stella & Don had invited us over for dinner this evening.  She baked a chicken and had five or six side dishes as well.  It was an excellent home-cooked meal.  :)

We chatted for a couple hours.  Eventually, the yawns started and Linda & I returned home for the evening.  There was a brief discussion about joining the campfire group, but we ultimately decided to just relax and watch a little TV before bedtime.

Don & I had a good time today, got some good pics, and ended with a great meal.  Now I'll just have to consider what we found and make some decisions before we leave early next week.  :)

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Laundry, More New Friends, & A Fish Fry - (Quartzsite, AZ)

This was one of our cooler, windier days with a high only in the low 60s.  But, again, not nearly the amount of dust, at least where we are, that I had expected when coming to Quartzsite.

Linda & Stella made plans to do laundry in town today and then go bead shopping.  They took off around 10:00.

I made arrangements with Brenda & Dennis ("hogans1947" on the Forum) for a visit.  Brenda & Dennis are from Illinois, lived in southern California, and were running a business and living in Louisville when they read about us in the newspaper back in the summer of 2005.

They had been planning to full-time.  They sold their business and house and started on the road in September of 2006.

We had corresponded several times, but we had never met.  Since they are staying about 45 minutes away in Blythe, California, this looked like a good opportunity.

I got a shower and straightened up.  Of course it doesn't take much to straighten up as we keep the rig pretty organized and free from clutter.  I've said it many times - clutter can make this box on wheels close in very quickly, and our moods become somewhat irritable when that happens.  :)

While Linda was gone, Pam came over and announced an impromptu fish fry this afternoon at 3:00.  "Bring whatever fish you might have to throw in the deep fryer or, if you don't have any fish, bring a side dish."

Also, the group sent flowers to Kathy of Grant & Kathy (BirdingRVers).  They are here with the Montana Owners Club (MOC), but Kathy had to have emergency surgery in Blythe Sunday night.  I usually don't discuss matters of such a personal nature, but Grant posted some information on their blog, so I wanted to give the RV-Dreams Family an opportunity to lend their support.

We're all with you Kathy!!  And Raider is in good hands, though he misses you both.  :)

Grant & Kathy have good friends here in the MOC, but it has been our experience that RVers everywhere will step up to the plate and take care of one another in situations like this.  The support system among RVers, even complete strangers, is amazing.  :)

Brenda & Dennis arrived a little after noon with their new addition, Koby, a three-month old long-haired dachsund.  Yes, I should have gotten a picture of the adorable little fella, but I didn't.  :)

They have been camphosting at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point, California between San Diego and Los Angeles.  They lived in that area when they lived in California, so they still have family and friends there.  They have a pretty good deal where they worked for three months, are taking a two month break, and then return for two more months.

Linda returned from the laundry and bead store to meet our guests.  They tried to convince her that driving in southern California with the RV wasn't that big a deal.  But I don't think she bought it.  :)

With hugs and handshakes, they departed to drive north and scout Lake Havasu.  Don & I are going to drive up that way tomorrow to check out potential camping spots while the ladies bead.

By then, it was almost time for the fish fry.  Linda was scrambling to figure out what to fix.  She came up with hush puppies, so I checked with the fish cook to see if that would work.

Some of these westerners have never had hush puppies.  :)

We gathered between a couple of rigs to block the wind as much as possible.

As usual, there was way too much food.  They alternated cooking various kinds of fish, french fries, and hush puppies in the deep fryer.

Yeah, there were some healthy choices too.  But my plate wasn't full of salad.  :)

As the sun sank, we moved chairs out into what was left of the sunbeams to stay a little warmer.  Soon, it was too chilly and Linda & I vacated.  :)

But I was back out taking pictures before completely settling in.

Just can't help it.  :)

Linda beaded while I watched some basketball and returned some emails.  Soon it was off to bed.

We managed to get our batteries completely charged today, so we may not have to use the generator at all tomorrow.

Boondocking Update

It's a record for us.  We've been boondocking a full week now without needing water or dumping.  We've had to use the generator about an hour a day, and we've run our furnace for one cycle each of the last three mornings.  We've had to fill one 40 pound propane cylinder that wasn't quite full when we got here.  I figure it has cost us about $30 for the week.  :)

We had done six days once before, and we knew we could do a week, but usually we've parked without hook-ups at state parks where we've used the bathrooms and showers to cut down on fresh water and holding tank usage.  That's sort of boondocker cheating.  :)

In the week's time, Linda has washed dishes just about every day and we've each had two showers that were shorter than usual, but not really boondocker or military showers.  Boondockers have lots of tips and tricks to make water and holding tanks last longer, but we haven't really employed any of those.  We've been conscious of our usage, but not particularly conservative.

The specs on our rig say our tanks are 100 gallons fresh water, 45 gallons black, and 90 gallons gray (actually two tanks - galley & shower).  Unfortunately, we don't know how that 90 gallons is divided.  :)

I'm sure the serious boondockers will say we should be able to go a month on those tanks.  :)

We'll see how many more days we can go using our approach.  :) 

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More Socializing - (Quartzsite, AZ)

Linda was up early to teach her 9:00 beading class to some of the ladies.  Her new students seem to be enjoying their tutor.  :)

I got Don to go with me to look at propane heaters.  We have been considering buying one and tying it into the existing propane line to use when boondocking instead of the inefficient, energy-using furnace.

But there is a lot to making that decision, so we will proceed cautiously.  I was going to do a whole pros & cons analysis for you, but I'll save that for a separate entry.  :)

We arrived back at the circle just in time to get ready to go to a get-together hosted by Doug & JoAnn over at the Escapees Boomers group area.  They had invited a few folks that we knew that read our site and some that we had not yet met.

Don & Stella rode with us.  We arrived right at 2:00 and joined Doug & JoAnn and Bill & Diane.  Shortly after that George & Bonnie joined along with J.C. & Bev, Ken & Vicki, Sam & Carolyn, and Odell & Laurie.

Doug & JoAnn had managed to snag a sweet site parallel to a wash with mountains in the background.

Not a single RV in sight looking out in that direction.  :)

We got to see some folks we hadn't seen for awhile and got to meet some new ones.  We chatted and had snacks for a couple hours until it was time for the Boomers daily happy hour and activities announcements at 4:00.

They have had 136 rigs that have been in "Boomerville" during the last few weeks.  Wow.  They have lots of activities and lots of people.  :)

It was pretty windy and we didn't stay long.  We got home and I checked emails.

Leslie & Mike had tried to find us at Boomerville without luck.  My directions were off a bit, so they had roamed the desert for awhile.  Oops.

So I called them.  They were just having dinner with some friends in an RV park in town and they invited us to join them.  So we did.  We wouldn't get another chance to see them since they are leaving tomorrow.  Plus I felt bad about sending them on a wild goose chase.  :)

After meeting their friends and having a bite to eat, we retired to their rig to catch up a little more.  With hugs and handshakes and safe travel wishes, we eventually departed.

It is a bit more of a challenge finding your rig in the pitch black night in the desert.  You can't see the landmarks you've memorized.  :)

After a couple of almost wrong turns, we made it home.

Another day down and a few more to go out here in the desert.  My goal is to make it through tomorrow without dumping or getting water to prove absolutely that we can do this boondocking thing for a week without needing hook-ups.  :)

I think we can ... I think we can .... I think we can ....   :)

br>

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The Quartzsite Lowdown - (Quartzsite, AZ)

We'll cover our day first, then I'll answer some questions about Quartzsite.

The clouds went away and it was a beautiful morning.  We had no plans other than some visitors coming around 2:00.

Linda gave me a haircut.  Then Steve wanted in on the action and Linda obliged while Robbie looked on.  :)

Shortly after that, a bright yellow van pulled into our circle.

Linda was inside the rig.  I shouted "Linda, there's a van out here with a bull sticking his head out the window."  She says ... of course .... "What?"  I just said "I wouldn't lie to ya".

Not only was there a bull sticking his head out of the van window, on the other side was a donkey.  Guess where Linda went first?  :)

Apparently these folks put on a bull & donkey show each Thursday afternoon at 2:00 down the Plomosa Road in the area known as Bouse.  The show is free, but they take donations.  Today was promotion day.  :)

You never know what you'll see in Quartzsite.  :)

We hung out and waited for our guests.  They called and said they got held up and would arrive around 3:00 instead of 2:00.  No problem.  We joined the 2:00 snacks potluck in the middle of the circle.  :)

Someone had flown over our circle in an ultra-lite and taken pictures.  So I got the flash drive and downloaded them onto my laptop so I could show you.

That gives you a little idea of what it is like here, but there are many areas that have a lot more RVs.  You can just Google "Quartzsite Aerial Photos" to see other views of the area.

Our guests, Nancy & Joel, arrived just as we were finishing up grazing around the snacks.  We met Nancy back in late 2006 at the Escapees Rainbow park in Livingston, TX.  She was just starting out as a solo.

Along the way, in the last few months, she met Joel.  One thing led to another and they are traveling together.  :)

We talked for a couple hours and had a great time catching up.

One of the funniest moments was during our discussion of a product that helps cut down water usage while boondocking.  It's called "Happy Bowl".  I'll let you just follow the link to see what it's all about.  :)

Hugs & handshakes as Nancy & Joel departed.  At the same time Don & Stella arrived.  But they weren't here to visit.  They took us up on our offer to bring their rig over and join our circle.  :)

Once they got their Mobile Suites past the Montana Owners Club gatekeeper, we found them a spot and they got set up.

Of course they are an S.O.B.  Anytime you park in a group of rigs of the same brand and you have a different rig, that makes you an S.O.B. - Some Other Brand.  :)

By that time, it was starting to get dark.  But that hadn't stopped Linda.  She was holding a beading session by lantern light.  :)

She's holding a class and demo in the morning at 9:00.  :)

I wandered off and took a few pics as the sun was setting.

This one made a pretty cool image.

Though the mountains are more distant in some directions than others, we are surrounded by mountain views.

The sun went down and everyone retired to their rigs until it was time to join the campfire.  We sat out in the middle of the circle for quite some time enjoying the fire and conversation.  We called it a night around 9:15.  :)

The Quartzsite Lowdown

Okay, now I'll try to give a little more info on this spectacle called Quartzsite.

Quartzsite is a town with about 2,000 official residents.  However, in the winter months, they get visitors of anywhere between 750,000 to 1.5 million people.  According to the Chamber of Commerce website, there could be 75,000 RVs in the desert and RV parks in town during the winter.

The town is surrounded by Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land.  There is BLM land all over the U.S., but most of it is out west.  What makes this area unique is the amount of land designated for camping and the amount of land designated for "dispersed" camping with no fee required.

Here is the link to the Arizona BLM Camping page.  You will see there are "developed campgrounds" on BLM land (usually requires a fee and there are some facilities), Dispersed Recreation Camping (free primitive camping with no facilities and 14-day stay limits), and two Long-Term Visitors Areas (one here in Quartzsite and the other near Yuma).

The Long-Term Visitors Areas (LTVAs) are specially designated for long-term camping between September and April.  The LTVA in Quartzsite is called La Posa and is 11,400 acres.  For the period of September 15 through April 15, you can get an LTVA permit for $180 and stay up to seven months.  Or, for $40, you can get a short-term permit and stay up to 14 days on the LTVA.

So, because of the mild winter temps (Average highs of 65 in December/January with average lows of 38) and cheap camping, you can see why folks flock to this area.  The La Posa LTVA has vault toilets, dump stations, water stations, and trash services according to the BLM website.

Now, we are staying in one of the many Dispersed Recreation Camping Areas.  It's free and we can stay up to 14 days in a 28-day period.  After the 14 days, you are supposed to move at least 25 miles from that spot and stay away another 14 days before you can go back to the same area.  However, it's pretty clear that there are just too many folks here to enforce those rules during January & February.

We've been pleasantly surprised about the lack of wind and dust where we are camped - six miles north of town on Plomosa Road.  But we've heard that it is much dustier in other areas closer to town.  Here, we are parked on hard-packed lava rock whereas other areas have more dirt and sand than rock.

Perhaps we've just been lucky with the wind as I'm sure it can get quite windy here.

I'm guessing that all the shows and swap meets started growing as a result of the number of snowbirds.  And with the creation of the La Posa LTVA in 1983, I'm betting things just kept getting bigger from there.

So, you have a combination of people staying here for the entire winter, people staying for a couple weeks or a month, people coming for just a few days for the shows, and everything in between.

Most of the people that stay long-term are experienced boondockers and have everything they need.  They call the septic people to dump tanks, they take water bladders into town, and they tend to have solar and generators for all their power needs.  I'm sure some break camp and haul their rigs into town for water, dumping, etc.

Of course there are almost 60 RV parks with hook-ups listed on the Chamber website.  So not everyone that comes here boondocks.  :)

I'm sure there are the occasional troublemakers and I'm sure there is a certain amount of petty crime associated with all these people, but I haven't heard of anything while we've been here.

While you certainly can come by yourself and don't have to be part of any group, I would have found the whole thing completely overwhelming in trying to determine where to stay.  Groups make it easier and provide security.  Usually there is always someone around camp and you don't have to worry about leaving your rig by itself.

While we are in a large group, our camping area doesn't have nearly the hustle and bustle of those nearer town or the interstate.  It's actually really peaceful except for the generators.  But most of those are quiet and not run all the time.

There is still plenty of opportunity to find a quiet place by yourself if you want.  There is so much camping land here, you can actually get away from the crowds.  I would recommend doing quite a bit of scouting first, though.

So there you have it.

And remember that we are first-time Quartzsite visitors and I care nothing about the shows or shopping and very little about the town itself.  So, I'm not very good from a tourist standpoint.  :)

I thought I would hate it here, but I don't.  I think I would hate it if I were closer to town with much more density in people and RVs.  There are no designated spaces and people will park very close to you if they like your spot.  :)

However, like I said before, you can get away from all of that and just come for the cheap camping and sunshine if you like.

Quartzsite - most people either love it or hate it.  I hate aspects of it, but not all of it.  However, I wouldn't go as far as to say I love it either.  It's not as bad as I thought, and I wouldn't hesitate to come back for the cheap camping and weather.  :)

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More RV-Dreams Visitors - (Quartzite, AZ)

It was cloudy all day today with a sprinkle of rain a couple of times.  Not good for solar.  :)

Around 11:00 a.m. Suzanne & Brad (Camping & Travels ... Adventures With Suzanne & Brad) arrived on their bikes.  They are parked just down the road with a small group that had invited them to join.

I spotted them on the Datastorm Users Map and made contact since I knew they were a couple we had corresponded with but had not yet met.  You don't have to have a Datastorm to be a Datastorm Users member and plot yourself on the map.  We are #2190 on the map.

Suzanne & Brad are slightly younger than us and still testing the waters on this full-timing deal.  They have a travel trailer and are self-admitted "baby-steppers".  :)  They still have their house and won't be making any rash decisions about keeping or selling it.

It's not too often we meet couples on the road about our age.  We had a good time and we might get to see them again at Arches while we are camphosting.  Their blog is a really good travel blog, so be sure to check it out.  :)

As Brad & Suzanne were departing, John & Aileen (John & Aileen On The Road) arrived.  John had corresponded with us a few times, but I wasn't aware they were here in Quartzsite.  :)

They are from Salmon Arm, British Columbia.  Most of the Canadians we have met spend six months in the U.S. over the winter and then return to their house for the summer.  John & Aileen have rented out their house, so, while they return to Canada, they will be living in their travel trailer for awhile.

Like Suzanne & Brad, their Quartzsite group was having a potluck this evening, so they departed to prepare for that.  More hugs and handshakes for another very nice couple.  :)

Tomorrow, we have some visitors scheduled to come see us.  We don't know about the unscheduled ones, but it's fun to see who might appear.  :)

Sunday, we will visit the Escapees Boomers group and expect to see a few RV-Dreamers there.  Many folks will be clearing out after Sunday.

After a little lunch, one of the ladies here, Pam, came over to bead with Linda.  She learned a new bracelet and is getting a refresher on some of the beading she had learned previously.

Eventually, they went into town to Hardies Beads & Jewelry to pick up some beads.  Bless you Pam!  :)

They had some special sale prices, but Linda said they were much more expensive than she can buy product online.

Once they returned, Linda joined one of the small groups for cocktails until it started getting a little chilly.  I turned on the inverter a little early and watched some basketball, golf, and "A Few Good Men" for about the 10th time.

We shut everything down and went to bed a little early.  Hopefully, we will have some sun tomorrow to give us a really good battery charge.  This would be a great place to get some website work done if I could keep the inverter on a little longer.

Other than the madhouse and shopping in town, I sort of like the atmosphere of the camping part.  I figured Quartzsite would be a "one and done" experience for us, but I'd come back again.  We might even do our own RV-Dreams circle sometime.  :)

Just don't make me go to town any more than absolutely necessary.  And, by the way, I won't be going to see the "naked bookseller" and you won't see his picture on this Journal.  If you want to see that, just Google and you can find him on just about every other RVing blog on the web.  :)

I'd rather take pictures of sunsets.  :) 

 

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