Lots to catch up on. I arrived at Quartzsite on Thursday and left Monday morning. Had a great time visiting with folks I had met previously online, so it was nice to put faces to names. Also met lots of new fellow travelers and traded stories about our RVs and our travel experiences. Unfortunately, the weather was always windy, which made the cool, cloudy days really nasty, so socializing was way less than normal. Quartzsite hosts two famous shows - an RV show that is the biggest flea market for RVers and rock, mineral and gem shows, plus a general flea market that runs all of January and February for the snowbirds that frequent the area. I went to the flea market on Friday and walked miles to see all the booths, but did not buy a thing. On Saturday, I went to the opening day of the RV show and it was so packed, i stood in place for minutes at a time, waiting for the crowd to move. Crazy!!! Definitely a major happening. I got a great deal on replacing our awnings and picked up LED lights for the RV.
 |
| Cloudy weather on Thursday and Friday at least gave us a pretty rainbow |
 |
| The Winnebago View/Navions gathered together as the weather started to clear Friday night. The flags at friends RV shows how hard the wind was blowing |
 |
| Sunny Saturday and the wood pile ready for our bonfire tonight |
 |
| Looking north from atop my RV to the next section of RVs. The RV show tent 1/2 mile away can be sen in upper left |
 |
| Not everyone was gathered around the campfire site - many spread out around the periphery |
 |
| The campfire ready to light and the woodpile stash |
 |
| The crew gathering for the potluck dinner and the later bonfire |
 |
| Sundown and the bonfire |
After thoroughly enjoying the experience of the Quartzsite "happening," I left Monday morning to return east on I-10 and decided to put in a couple of long days of driving to get out of Arizona, New Mexico and west Texas to get to Big Bend National Park, my next major stop.
 |
| Beginning of a beautiful sunset at my campground southeast of El Paso, Texas |
 |
| The finale of the sunset |
Today, Wednesday, I headed south off route 10, enjoying a few sights along the way.
 |
| A Prada Store (super high end designer boutique) in the middle of completely nowhere, southeast Texas. It is not open for business. |
 |
| Saw this and asked Siri what it was - she said a tethered radar system. Hmmm. |
When I reached Presidio, Texas I followed the scenic road, El Camino del Rio, southeast along the Rio Grande river. This road passes through canyons and climbs mountains - considered the most beautiful drive in Texas, and I agree.
 |
| Rio Grande |
 |
| This area has some hoodoos - odd sculptures from eroded rocks |
I took one short hike into a slot canyon - just beautiful.
 |
| The white on the edges is white rock (from volcanic ash ages ago) and the dark patches on the ground are pebbles from flash floods that would be puddles after a rainstorm |
 |
| Picnic area with teepees for shade towards the east end of the El Camino del Rio |
I stopped tonight in Lajitas, Texas, along the Rio Grande and tomorrow I will head a bit northeast to Big Bend National Park. This town was first established by the Army as a fort to protect settlers from Pancho Villa.
No comments:
Post a Comment