We drove from Deming to Huachuca, AZ and stayed at Quail Ridge RV Parkfor two days; it being a Passport America entity we got in for $16 a night. We parked right next to Bob and Kathy Burns who we knew from Escapees Colorado Chapter 2 Rally last spring in Colorado City...Bob led a workshop on geocaching. Happy hour commenced at 4 pm out in the warm, warm Arizona sun. Although there were some issue going on in the park with the lease holder being fired by the owners, the park itself is extremely nice and well maintained.
We wanted to show Bill and Lesle Bisbee and to see our friends Laurie and Odel who were also in Bisbee; but alas, Laurie threw out her back and their cat, Luna, got sick and Odel had to take her to the vet so we missed seeing them....they are on their way East.
Bisbee is an old mining town and only as old mining town can be, it is full of history and charm. For our Colorado followers, Bisbee is like Creede, but on a larger scale.
After reading Laurie's description of the Bisbee Breakfast Club (BBC) we were excited to try it out and it sure did NOT disappoint. Low keyed and on a quiet street, the BBC on a Saturday is a rocking place, full to capacity and for a good reason....the food is fabulous!!! We got there for lunch and I had the special hamburger with cheddar cheese and a chipolte-mango salsa....my, my, my! Lesle had an specialty omlette with the biggest biscuit I've ever seen all served by this big biker dude, pony-tailed and dressed all in black named, Darrell. His lingo matched his lifestyle and we had a delightful time with him and his comments.
Look at the coconut cream pie Jim and I devoured!
Bisbee is a tourist type town with a wonderful mining museum part of which is sponsored by the Smithsonian Institute.
There is also a great mining tour, etc. We saw this car with its personalized expressions.
Isn't it grand!!!!!
Bill and Lesle decided to stay for the rest of the week, so Jim and I took off for Tucson and our much loved BLM land south of town on San Joaquin and Ajo Way. We were so happy to see our friend, Les Buffham was already there and he and Jim had a great time catching up. Les came over later that night and played us some of his new songs and poems. Les is a renown cowboy poet and has been named Cowboy Poet of the Year several times. He is a character and so much fun to be around. We came at the right time for Les as he had a doctor's appointment at the VA and they put him in the hospital for two days. Luckily we were there and watched over his rig.
We renewed our friendship with Jim and Marcia Cumberland whom we first met at the Gypsy Journal Rally in Casa Grande in 2007 as both Jims were participants of the Cactus Queen Beauty Contest....neither won, however; and then we met again in 2008 in Coffeyville, KS, working for amazon.com. Jim is a storyteller and an aspiring to be a skinny Santa Claus thus the growing beard and Marcia is a talented writer. We had lunch while at Snyder Hill and enjoyed talking the afternoon away.
We met another couple at Snyder Hill, Joel and Barbara, from Oregon. They checked out the sights during the day and we had happy hour at 4 pm and it lasted till 8 pm and never ate dinner either night, but we sure had fun and Joel makes the BEST pico de gallo. We ate up a whole pint of the glorious stuff. Joel and Barbara are Escapees and on their way to Quartzsite also, but weren't going to be with anyone else, so we invited them to become Boomers and join us in the desert. They agreed and will be here this week.
Lesle and Bill drove up to Tucson one day and we all went out to La Fuente Mexican Restaurant on Oracle Road for lunch. If you read other rvers' blogs you would have already heard about La Fuente, the best pink and purple Mexican restaurant in Tucson!
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I spent our week in Tucson knitting and reading. I really enjoy Fern Michaels' series called The Sisterhood - strong charactered and professional women who have experienced injustices by the law and take revenge through masterful plot. There are about 10-12 books in the series now and I bought the last two and enjoyed sitting out in the sun and reading. I also finished up a hat for
Knots-Of-Love.org It is an organization that provide hats for chemo patients undergoing treatment. Last year I knitted 12 hats for my dear friend, Lory, when she went through treatment for breast cancer and I know how much it meant to her to have a soft, warm hat to cover her head, especially to sleep. I have knitted numerous ribbed caps for newborns at hospital nurseries as a project of the Escapees, but I wanted to do something more creative.
We spent some time looking at a 34 foot, three slide, 2005 Discover America Hitchhiker at Beaudry RV Sales, but after two days of looking and thinking we passed as we found a stress crack on the corner of one of the living room slides.....dang-----and the price was right too!!!!!!
We also enjoyed lunch two days in a row at good, ole In-N-Out Restaurants. If you haven't heard of them before they serve ONLY hamburgers, cheeseburgers, hand cut French fries, shakes and soda pop.....period....nothing else. But boy do they succeed in those!!
Last Friday we drove from Tucson to Queen Valley to visit our friends Dave and Marie Dengate, whom we met at the Colorado Boomerang summer of 2008, and subsequently this last summer when they volunteered at the Great Sand Dunes National Park.
They bought a park model at Queen Valley RV Resort a couple of years ago and although they will be coming to Quartzsite in a couple of days, we wanted to see Queen Valley and their place. The park is very, very nice with many activities and a beautiful community center with pool, two hot tubs, large barbeque area, activity rooms, etc. I got sick Saturday afternoon and spent the evening in bed with chills.
But Sunday we enjoyed the company of some of the Dengates friends and went out for pizza with a bunch of them.
And look at the gorgeous PURPLE cacti we saw on the property.
One of the friends came in on Saturday and LAVONNA did the driving as she said her husband was a better navigator then she was. Boy did I admire the way she whipped that big Hitchhiker back into their site.
I told Jim "I use to be brave and assured. Now I'm just a little, old lady!" Then during the evening Jim made a comment about spending money for me to take rv driving lessons and not driving the rig since that day........sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
On Monday we drove - scratch that I, yes, I DROVE the rig from Queen Valley, THROUGH Phoenix on I-10 and 17 to Quartzsite; about a 3 hour drive. I did it fine. I did ask Jim to do the refueling at the truck stop, and he thought he would be driving after getting diesel.....but oh, no, Mama got back behind the wheel and we took off. Jim paid me the greatest compliment by closing his eyes and actually going to sleep...taking a little nap as I drove!!! Know that was something.
So we arrived in Boomerville outside of Quartzsite about 2 pm and were warmly greated by those first ten rigs here. In a couple of days there will be 150 rigs assembled, believe it or not. Jim lite the bbq grill and we enjoyed a wonderful steak dinner with Bill and Lesle.
Watching the stars "pop" out at night was a special wonder out here in the desert, far from the lights of any city. Oh, I am so happy out here in Quartzsite.
Well, dear friends, it has been three hours to get these last 11-12 days caught up on the blog, but it is done now, thankfully!
Oh, one more photo I found while driving down Oracle Road in Tucson. What do you think goes on it there??????
Remember, you are loved!
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