“Q” (01-24-15)

  

Q is for Quartzsite, a small town in the middle of a desert.  So, why were we parked in the middle of the desert, with no hook-up and only the electricity we could generate for ourselves?  I mean, what do you do for 12 days, out in the middle of nowhere?  Whew!  Where do I begin?






Well, first of all, to say we are by ourselves is not quite correct.  We “circle the wagons” with a bunch of our friends, most of whom are full timers like us and most of whom are members of Escapees, a club for RVers.









When we arrived, we were one of a few, and by the time we left, we were one of many.  In fact we had over 40 people in our group this year- many of them new- so we have a lot of new friends now!














 

Sometimes people arrive after dark and someone feels we have to go on the roof with a flashlight to guide them in.

We call our group the class-less class.  If someone starts full timing in 2014, they are considered to be part of the class of 2014, but our group spans many years, from 2008-2014 and we are always welcoming new members. We also, as you can see from the quality of this picture, have a professional photographer (Carol Dwyer) in our group.  Every year she lines us up for a group photo.

Rather than your standard potlucks, this year we opted for themed evenings.  Paul and I were two of the hosts for Margarita/Quesadilla night.

 

We started the evening with a toast, followed by the bursting of a custom made piñata, which was a house, sitting in a wagon- the logo for the Escapees Club. Once the candy was on the ground, people picked through it, looking for their favorites.

  Other group dinners included a hot dog night and an Italian night, complete with wine and Sangria.

We had so many activities, we had to post everything on a white board to keep everyone in the loop.

One of the reasons for coming here in January is the big RV show.

Although we don’t really buy much, heading to the Big Tent RV Show gives us an excuse to stop at two of our favorite places- Beer Belly’s Adult Day Care, where you can get a burger and beer while listening to live music- and Thrifty Ice cream- $4 and they don’t do single scoops- yum!!

Other activities included Mimosas in the Morning and a Take it or Leave it table- people dropped off things they don’t want anymore and other people shopped.  Anything that was left was donated to a thrift store.

Some of our activities are mundane.  This is what the bed of your truck looks like when you announce that you are making a trash run.

One of our favorite pastimes that isn't very plentiful in Quartzsite is hiking.   We did hike several times but the trails aren’t very interesting and there aren't very many of them.

And finally, no trip to Quartzsite would be complete without a trip to the Desert Bar.  Located 5 miles down a dirt road, the bar is only open noon-6 pm, on the weekends, so at 11:30 am, the road to the bar holds a steady stream of cars and trucks, all trying to get there before the parking lot fills up.

The Desert Bar is completely dependent on solar energy and is a unique place to listen to live music while enjoying a beer and a burger.  It is best enjoyed when you are with
 someone who has never been there.








Over the last few days, many people have moved on to new locations, as we will do tomorrow….

“P” (01-16-15)

  P is for Phoenix, although technically we stayed at a resort in Mesa.  We spent almost a week here, relaxing in the pool and hot tubs…..











… listening to music at happy hour by the pool and watching football games.










While here, we got the rest of our doctor’s appointments taken care of for the year, and did a boat load (or RV load) of laundry in preparation for our sojourn into the desert. 



We also managed to squeeze in one hike- the 7.4 mile Pass Mountain Trail- before we left town.

Tucson’s 2nd Part (01-11-15)

After taking leave of our friends, we headed all the way over to the northern side of Tucson.  We had booked this week at Catalina State Park a long time ago because we knew we’d be in Tucson for doctor appointments. We’ve never stayed here and wanted to check it out.



 
The colors of the sunset lit up the surrounding mountains. And yes, that is snow on the hills.








 

Although there aren't that many hiking trails inside the park, several of the trails were accessible from the campground, which made them very appealing.

Talk about a healthy saguaro cactus!  We've never seen so many with so many arms.

 
Still keeping our focus on hiking, we hiked the Canyon Loop trail twice.  Round trip from the campground it’s a 5 mile hike.

In between all that exhausting hiking, we still managed to find some time to spend with Mike and Julie.  One night they came over for dinner, and another, we met them for drinks at a Tequila bar in the Marriott Resort overlooking the city.

They have a neat tradition, every day at 5:30 they have a toast, and they provide the tequila! 


We also took an afternoon and headed up to……

Biosphere 2

I remember way back when the Biosphere 2 “experiment” originated.  Building of the complex began in 1987 and was finished by 1991. 
Biosphere 2 is modeled after Biosphere 1- the earth.

“Under the Dome” there are 5 miniature ecosystems that mirror ecosystems here on earth.  There is a mini ocean and a mini rainforest, among others.

The biosphere was a fully enclosed and sealed system. The roof has several “lungs”  that regulated air pressure.













In 1991 8 people were sealed inside the Biosphere, with their only access to the outside world being a window with a phone.

For the next two years they ate only the food provided at the start of the experiment (goats, chickens etc) and what they could grow.

  
Each one had their own private space, but they shared one kitchen, where they took turns cooking meals.

There were many challenges along the way. One of the biggest was that although they had enough nutrition from their food, they struggled to consume enough calories, and were hungry all the time.



Also, it took about 2 weeks to grow enough harvest-able coffee beans to make enough coffee for all 8 people, and several participants were frustrated by the lack of caffeine.


Years later the entrepreneur funding the experiments sold out and the biosphere sat idle.  Eventually Columbia University purchased it and used it for experiments, and they eventually sold it to the University of Arizona.



The Biosphere is no longer a closed system but has numerous doors and windows and is open to the outdoors.  Nowadays it is being used by scientists from all over the world to research carbon.

Specifically, they are studying carbon, water and air cycles, how they interact, and what that tells us about climate change.

I enjoyed the tour, but I was hoping to hear more about the original mission of Biosphere 2, and the tour concentrated on the current research being conducted.

And then we moved on to Phoenix………