Quartzsite - Update

We are still here, keeping busy and relaxing. The weather has warmed up so it is a much more pleasant place to be now. We go for a long walk almost every day and we go to town every couple days for one reason or another. Either we need propane, water, groceries or just to visit one of the flea markets. Last week we made a trip into Parker, which is about 25 miles north of us, to do laundry, get our mail and do some grocery shopping.

The number of people here has increased dramatically since we first arrived. Here is a photo that shows what it looks like in many areas. Keep in mind that we are six miles north of Quartzsite and most of the visitors stay in the larger areas south of town where water and dump facilities are available.

We went to the Big Tent RV show on Tuesday. It is a huge tent with booths set up like you see at a state fair. All the vendors have things for RV'ers so there are lots of goodies to look at. We purchased a macerator but nothing else. It was fun to wander around and see what is available in the industry. The place was very crowded and we had to park some distance away.

Speaking of the macerator, I thought I would share how we manage to deal with servicing the rig while sitting in the middle of nowhere. Hooking up and towing the trailer into town to dump our tanks and fill with water would be a big hassle. Our trailer holds 70 gallons of fresh water and about 140 gallons of wastewater in the tanks. We have a collapsible bladder, similar to a small waterbed mattress, that we use to bring in water from a source in town. It holds about 45 gallons and sits on the bed of the truck. We have a 12 volt water pump that we use to transfer the water from the bladder to the tank on the trailer. We have our tanks pumped out by one of the honey wagons that cruise through the area. They are pretty convenient, but rather expensive as they charge about $25 each time. We have ordered a tank (which is being shipped to Daryl's) that we will use to haul our own waste water to a dump site. The tank will hold 105 gallons and will sit on the back of the truck as well. The macerator mentioned above is the device that hooks onto the dump valve of the trailer and pumps the waste into the external tank. You can think of the macerator as a portable garbage disposal that chops the waste into very small particles so it can be pumped through a garden hose. Sorry if that is too graphic for some, but that is the kind of thing we deal with all the time in the RV'ing world. After all, it's got to go somewhere!

Once we have the tank we will be completely self sufficient without having to move the trailer. We can just use the truck to go get water and propane and to haul the waste water away. Our solar system provides all the electricity we need, and we have two generators for backup if the sun does not shine. Our tripod mounted satellite system provides TV and internet access and our cell phones work in most places. That's how we do it.

I have also ordered a new tire for the scooter. The rear tire is pretty worn down and I don't want to take any chances with it. I am having that shipped to Daryl's also so we will be making a trip in to the Phoenix area sometime in the next couple weeks after the tire and tank arrive. We will only bring the truck so will either make the trip in one day or perhaps stay in the truck overnight. It is equipped with refrigerator, microwave, TV, porta-potty, double bunks and a dinette, so staying in it is quite comfortable.

That's about it for now from Quartzsite. It's tough to post about what we are doing when we are not doing much, but we don't want the blog police to issue us any citations.