Quartzsite and beyond

When we checked into the KOA in Blythe, they let me spin the ‘wheel of fortune’ and I won a fishing pole set! I’m going to hang on to it until Kyle comes out to visit.

On Monday morning, we hooked up with some friends, Mike & Rosalie, who we had met at the Monaco Rally in Lancaster last year. They were heading out into the Quartzsite desert to join some other Monaco Coach owners and we tagged along. We hung out there for a few days, going to the RV show in town and getting to know some fun new people. (Huggy Bob & Marlene, Rob & Jean, Jim & Peg, et. al. this is you! ~ Peg & Jim produce a web page you RVer’s and wannabe RVer’s might enjoy. http://www.americanrver.com/)

The weather has been so great that we’re hesitant to leave the Arizona area yet. High’s in the 70’s and lows in the 40’s and 50’s. On Friday, we made our way northeast to Wickenburg and are staying at an RV park called Horspitality RV Resort and Boarding Stable. That isn’t a typo. This is definitely a cowboy town and the hats and boots are not just for show! Today Les had a great day riding his off-road motorcycle. He did have one brief encounter with a Bull on the same trail that he was riding, but Les was able to give him a wide enough berth to not antagonize the big guy! This is a picture of the stables area behind the rv area.

While Les was out riding, I spent a bit of time going through the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in town. It was a very nice museum with a lot of the local history. Wickenburg is considered the Dude Ranch capital of the world, which started back in the 1920’s. Many still operate today and some have become medical treatment facilities. (Remuda has been converted into the nation's largest eating disorder treatment facility.) I had my first senior moment while visiting the museum; when I went to pay for my ticket, the lovely gray haired lady (old enough to be my grandmother) charged my credit card the senior price! I didn't know whether to be offended or appreciate the $1.50 savings!

Bola ties are reputed to have been invented here. Silversmith Victor Cedarstaff claims to have invented the bola tie in the late 1940s, and later patented his slide design. There were several examples in the museum and they’re quite attractive.

Tomorrow, we’re off to Tucson.