We are still hanging out at Quartzsite where we can dive into home projects in earnest.  For today it is touch up paint on the trailer and the motorhome steps plus brakes all around on the trailer—a tri-axle! 

We are off to see the Bouse Fisherman a geoglyph in the open desert just north of Quartzsite created by American Indians somewhere between 450 and 1000 years ago.  Check it out.  Then we go for the more modern run of the mill exploring, a quick walk through the stalls still open at Tyson Wells market.  We mostly stroll and look but do find a couple things including some pretty good small batch sodas: Rat Bastard Root beer – actually very good, Fanta grape, and key lime soda.  We head back home for some great burgers and a quiet evening.  It is a great night for star gazing, beautiful!        

We are still chasing the annoying stink bugs that invaded the motorhome last winter while it was in storage; so today we unpack every outside storage compartment in search of their hideout.  No luck.  We vacuum out about 5 years of dust though so it isn’t a complete waste.  Kent airs up tires and services batteries and a few other odds and ends then we take the rest of the day off.    

It is a beautiful afternoon to just hang out in camp.  I face off against Carol in ladder-ball.  In what is only her second game ever, she beats me.  I didn’t fare any better when I challenged Kent.        

Carol goes hiking!  We head out to Palm Canyon to check out a palm grove perched in a narrow side canyon.  The hike is about ½ mile each way with 300 ft elevation gain and a fair amount of loose rock underfoot.  It is worth the walk with beautiful wildflowers and grand views.  Check it out.   

Carol goes birding. We are up at 6AM then off to the refuge.  Birding is pretty quiet.  Most large flocks have already moved on but there is a smattering of ducks and a few snow geese.  The nature trail winds through a lovely cottonwood grove for a nice walk…no birds.  Our best sightings are a burrowing owl and a great horned owl.  Both pose nicely.  We wander about the refuge several hours guided by a very poorly drawn map and dodging quarry size dump trucks on the refuge roads.  Herons and egrets make a showing.  Overall it a pretty nice day.

We work our way home then close out the day with a couple exciting games of ladder ball.     

We spend the day out and about in Quartzsite and find some interesting stuff.

The Great Tree: a 1000+ year old Ironwood Tree.  It is beautiful and amazing in this arid place.  Did you know: throughout Arizona they have identified Centennial Witness Trees, those proven to have been alive since statehood in 1912?  This ironwood is, of course, among those mighty trees.

The Hi Holly Monument: check this out …..it commemorates a camel driver, Hadji Ali (mis-pronounced as Hi Jolly) brought to the US by the army back in 1855.  It was all part of a project designed to determine if camels could be effective in road building and handling freight in the desert Southwest.  No surprise, the camels were great at those tasks; but the Civil War interrupted and everyone lost interest in the project.  The camels roamed free for a time but eventually all perished.  Hi Jolly lived his last days in Quartzsite and his contributions to the camel project are commemorated here. 

Celia’s Rainbow Gardens: the garden has grown significantly since Kent and I visited years ago.  It is a community project where residents are encouraged to create a space in remembrance of loved ones.  Native plants are in bloom, hummingbirds perch about, and unique art dots the open space.  It is a nice place for a stroll.

Dairy Queen:  ok, not unique to Quartzsite but a great stop on and 85F afternoon!