Countdown Begins

I’ll get to that shortly.  But I’ve received some questions from readers recently and will try to answer those first.  Fred wanted to know about the noise.  In my last blog I mentioned Janna and Mike moved a little to see if they could avoid hearing the noise at night.  Yes, we are close enough to a train track and highway to hear the noise at night. I think we’re about a mile away. With our windows closed, we really don’t hear much. However, I have been awakened by the train a few times.  Depends on which way the wind is blowing as to how well we hear it.

Cindy asked about “critters” like snakes and scorpions.  Yes, indeed, we watch out for them!  During the coldest part of the year, those creatures are not very active and aren’t seen so often.  But as the weather warms, we can expect more chances of encounters.  When I’m out walking, I keep the dogs on leashes and try to keep them from sticking their little noses into the many critter holes around.  I wear long pants and hiking shoes.  I make noise and watch where I’m walking.

And Penny asked if we ever thought we’d be boondocking for more than just a few days.  No, we really didn’t think we’d be here this long.   We’ve learned a lot – about boondocking and about ourselves since we’ve been out here.  We know that we will be incorporating this form of “camping” into our lifestyle from now on.  But, we will also still want to be in those full-hookup places too.  We’re not cut out to be without the everyday convenience of running water, sewer and electric all the time.  I have a new respect for conserving our resources though, and a realization I can live perfectly well without so much!

We’re starting to make preparations to return to civilization.  Oh no.  Oh, yes. Jim and I have discussed our choices and have made the decision to go to Phoenix for the next few weeks.  A full-out RV Resort.  I have a feeling we’ll be experiencing some re-entry shock for awhile.  It’s one of those places where there are rows and rows of park models with RV’s scattered throughout.  It’s near an interstate highway and lots of businesses.  It’s just the sort of place all the hard-core boondockers we know avoid like the plague.  But we’re still going.  I’ll be flying out of Sky Harbor Airport in a few weeks, leaving Jim with the dogs for a week.  We can wash the Castle there, which is a big plus.  On Monday morning, we’ll pull up our jacks and roll the Castle out of the desert and back to the pavement.  Not without looking back at our hills and rocks with some wistfulness at leaving though.

We have loved our desert experience, most especially since we’ve enjoyed it with good friends, Janna and Mike and now Gina and Rollie.  Yesterday was Gina and Rollie’s 28th wedding anniversary so we celebrated with burgers and hot dogs and a chocolate cake at our place last evening.  We wish them many, many more years of loving life together.

For today, I plan to soak up some of this wonderful desert sun and warmth!

Ellie Takes a Hike

I spent some time on the Geocaching website this morning, trying to determine if there are any Geocaches within walking/hiking distance of us.  I found one with a title that included the word Arrastra. It seemed like it was a do-able hike or walk of about 2 miles from here, so I made the rounds this morning to see if anyone was up for the distance.  Janna and Mike had already taken off in a different direction, Jim was getting ready to refresh our water supply, and Gina was just getting ready to wash her hair. That left me, my phone, my trusty GPS and the dogs.  Off we went.

I pretty much followed a straight line the whole 2 miles, which meant down and up the steep sides of the many washes between here and there.  Finally, I came to the place in the picture above.  I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what the heck that circular, concrete structure could be, out here in the absolute middle of nowhere in the Arizona desert.  Ok, so it’s really only a few miles outside the little town of Bouse, but after all the time I spent hiking, it sure seemed like it was the middle of nowhere.  To the right of the area pictured was a pretty deep hole in the ground, deep enough that I was very glad I had the dogs on leashes.  Eventually, I found the Geocache and signed the log.  Later on, I looked up the word Arrastra on the internet and found that it is a structure used in the milling of ore. One web site described it, “Arrastras were first introduced into the New World by the Spanish in the 1500's.  To use the arrastra, ore was broken into walnut-sized chunks with a sledge hammer and placed into the circular milling area.  Three drag stones, chained to a post in the center of the milling area, were rotated by hand or mule.  The drag stones crushed the ore into a fine powder and water was added until a thick slurry was produced.  Mercury (quicksilver) was then introduced to the mixture which removed and amalgamated any gold found in the ore.” 

I have no idea if any gold was actually found in this area, but maybe if we make it back to the Bouse museum, I may find the answer there.  Someone certainly put a lot of work into building this interesting structure.  When the dogs and I got back to our camp, Jim was just returning with his second load of water, so we’re all set for a few more days.  We still do not have any set day to return to civilization, thank goodness.  I can relax and enjoy my wide open spaces for awhile yet.

This afternoon was spent relaxing and reading.  Janna and Mike went to dump their tanks and fill with fresh water today.  When they got back, they moved just a little ways down from us, in a slight depression where they may have less noise late at night.  Janna invited all of us to their place for dinner this evening, and what a wonderful treat it was.  If anyone thinks we are suffering out here in the “wilderness”, please be assured we are definitely not!  Janna prepared an absolutely wonderful meal that included grilled steak, garlic mashed potatoes, salad, asparagus and homemade bread.  And, for dessert, there were fresh strawberries and angel food cake.

The weather forecast promises even warmer, sunnier days ahead, yes, there is definitely no suffering going on here!

Dogs’ Day

We don’t have many frustrations in this lifestyle.  However, sometimes getting good customer service in the medical arena, whether that be for people or dogs, can be a challenge.  Jasmine takes one medication, and we were nearly out of it.  It’s also time for their annual vaccinations, so I’ve been looking for a good veterinarian nearby.  Last week, when I took them to the groomer, I was given the name of a vet over in Blythe.  When I called them, the voice on the phone was less than friendly, and in a rather abrupt manner, informed me they were making appointments for late April.  I thanked her for her time and hung up.  My next call was to the animal hospital in Havasu City where we bought Jas’s food last week.  Total opposite tone of voice here.  As it happened, there was a cancellation for this afternoon, so I booked the time and we headed off to Havasu City to get the dogs all fixed up.

We had time for lunch first, and a stop at Lowe’s for some pieces and parts.  Then we headed over to the Havasu City Animal Hospital.  We were treated like old friends by the efficient and smiling receptionist, vet tech and veterinarian too.  What a delight!  The vet spent a lot of time gently examining the dogs and talking to me about various conditions and recommendations.  The dogs are both in great condition and now have their vaccinations all done.  Jas has her medications for the next three months, so we’re all set.  And I’m pleased that we were treated with such respect and consideration.  I made sure to tell the staff, doc included, that I was very impressed with their customer service, and if we’re back in this area again, I’ll definitely consider them first for our veterinary needs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We headed back home with a quick stop in Parker at the Walmart and gas station, both businesses we’re heavily supporting these days!

The sun is finally shining again after a cool, cloudy, windy day, and we happily settled in for the evening.

The Day After the Rain

Yesterday was an inside day, with wind and rain the main events outside.  Jim made a pot of chili and the gang came over around 4 with their contributions of cornbread from Janna, Fritos and cheese from Gina and wine from everyone.  We had a feast while it rained and even hailed a little bit!  Gina and I both made brownies, so we had chocolate galore for dessert.

But this morning, it was different, the sky was on fire!  What an incredible sunrise.

When it rains out here in the desert, the next day is extremely fragrant and fresh.  Everything seems cleaner, brighter, and most definitely greener.  Today was no exception, as we woke to a beautiful day.

Jim had laundry on the agenda, and I wanted a super-vacuum session, so it worked out perfectly for us.  He’d decided to try the Laundromat in Quartzsite today, and by 7:30 this morning he had everyone’s trash bags loaded (Monday is also one of the days to drop off our trash at the refuse transfer station in Quartzsite), and our laundry in the car.  Before the car had cleared our little desert area, I had the vacuum cleaner running.  I was done by around 8:30 and was ready to go on a power walk.  I found Gina, but she was not quite ready to go yet.  So I walked the dogs around for a little while until Gina was ready to go, and we took off.

This is one of our views from up the way:

Turn 90 degrees and this is another view:

Gina is just a little bit into the rocks around here, so no walk with her is complete without a little rock-hounding.  And, around here, she has LOTS of rocks to sort through!

 

The desert is starting to bloom, even though yesterday’s storm beat up the blossoms, they are still colorful:

By the time we got back from our walk, it was time to grab a quick bite of lunch.  My new router had been delivered to Janna’s friend’s address just north of Parker, so I drove and Janna navigated me to her house to pick it up.  We stopped in Parker for fresh water for Janna and Mike and cold beer for Jim.  We all have our priorities, you know!

Router in hand, we headed back home.  Janna and Mike had planned on leaving us tomorrow, but have decided to stay a little while longer, it’s still a little cool where they had planned to go, down around the Tombstone area.  See, we’re all finding it very hard to leave this area! It’s hard to beat perfection, and this is still a pretty darn perfect set-up as far as I’m concerned.

The six of us gathered at our house again this evening for a dinner of leftovers, including what I call refrigerator soup – I cleaned out my fridge of leftovers and turned them into a chicken vegetable soup that everyone seemed to enjoy.  We even had a few brownies left!

Ahhhh….life is definitely good.