Monday, January 24, 2011

ADIOS TO QUARTZSITE; PHOENIX, HERE WE COME!

Ready to leave QThis morning we said goodbye to our many friends and drove away from Boomerville in a cloud of dust.  What a great stay we had – so many good friends we’ve made over the years, and new friends we will look forward to seeing somewhere down the road.  The fantastic weather made it a better experience than in some years past – high temperatures in the 70’s with lots of sunshine, lows in the 40’s with a lovely full moon at night.  Very little wind, a blessing!

I’ve seen estimates that Quartzsite, with a permanent population under 3,000 residents, hosts over a million visitors during January and February.  Vacation housing in Q is VERY limited (maybe non-existent); the vast majority of visitors arrive in RV’s, by the tens of thousands.

To me, it is fascinating – and inspiring – that so many people can converge on the intersection of US Interstate 10 and US Highway 95 for two months, a temporary community powered by solar and generators, carrying their own water, food, and fun, creating “neighborhoods” of friends and/or like-minded individuals… it is an amazing slice of life.  To those not part of the RV’ing community, I know it seems odd and likely unappealing, but for us, in our neighborhood of friends and soon-to-be friends, it is a special time.

BUT, it felt good to arrive at Saddle Mountain RV Park (click here to read our review and see photos) in Tonopah, about 90 miles east of Q.  Odel spent all afternoon getting the dust off of Scoopy and Jules, then replaced our water pump which began to malfunction at the end of our boondocking stay.  I got all the electrical appliances working – hot water heater, the satellite, antenna, and TV’s – and turned my attention to our upcoming move from Scoopy to our rented loft.  If all goes as planned, renovations on Scoopy’s interior will begin on Thursday.

Cranberry Almond ThinsTomorrow – the first of two moving days - will be a full day, with an early start.  Before I sign off, though, another Costco recommendation. 

I know I have mentioned Costco’s Kirkland brand pre-mixed margaritas before – which we now improve with just a splash of Grand Mariner (Triple Sec would work just as well, but they don’t sell it at Costco and we are into one-stop shopping) – and they were a GREAT hit when we partied with Mary and Elaine and their friends during yesterday’s football playoffs.  Here is another great, new-to-us Costco purchase:  THINAddictives Cranberry Almond Thins.

These are like super-thinly sliced biscotti, a crisp vanilla-almond flavored, not-too-sweet cookie-like treat.  Within this box are 20 packages, 100 calories each.  They make a great snack with tea, or for a simple dessert.  The price is $6.99, I believe, about half (or less) the cost of 100 calorie cookie packs from the grocery store (and AT LEAST as tasty).

Adios for now.

11 comments:

  1. So sorry I missed you guys - I'll be coming to Boomerville on Wednesday.

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  2. Good luck with the renovations--we so enjoyed seeing you guys again and thanks for the Costco goody tip--will look forward to seeing the swanky motorhome down the road.

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  3. We stayed at Saddle Mountain in Tonopah... GREAT park! We really loved it there. I'll be looking for those cookies... They sound delish.
    Have fun & Travel Safe
    Donna

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  4. Good luck on your move and your reno's . Like Janna said it was so good to see you guys again so soon. Looking forward to running into you again before we leave for home in the spring.

    Brenda Brown

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  5. Sorry we couldn't meet up at Q. I have no doubt we will meet some day.

    Good luck in all your renovations. Try to stay calm throughout the process. Some days will be difficult. But the end result will be worth it, This I'm sure of.

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  6. Yum, almond thins...could I couple those with margaritas? Happy travels! Kathy
    http://seashellsandoveralls.blogspot.com

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  7. Can't wait to see your new interior...It's just like getting a new rig, eh??

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  8. We missed saying good bye. Hope to see you in Phx. E mail us at
    dandemiller@msn.com
    We'll be home someime in Feb. Look forward to getting together for a hike and having you to our home for dinner.
    Dick and Beth Miller

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  9. thanks for the tip about the cookies!!..we had them this weekend for the first time..and they are delicious!!!..safe travels to you both!!

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  10. Don't know if you guys like hot springs, but if so, check out El Dorado Hot Springs in Tonopah...especially the "Sunset" private tub. It's a quirky, fun and wonderful hot springs and we go there every time we're traveling to Arizona from Oregon. We'll be soaking there in two weeks....can't wait!

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  11. Quartzside does seem to be an unusual experience. I'm learning more about it thru the blogs. We will probably visit it some time on our adventure.

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