Quartzsite is an event everyone should try once just to say they did it and an event Tim and I attend each year because we both enjoy the desert and quiet fellowship.I often state that there are over 100,000 motorhomes dry camping in the desert for this event and my numbers are backed up by the many articles you can find about the gathering.Quartzsite is an Arizona city that swells from a summer population in the 100's to over 200,000 folks housed in rv's parked on lands surrounding the city limits managed by Federal bureau of Land management BLM. Fee to park in areas are free to a $40. Two week permit for the closer managed spots with water and dump station access. RainbowRV has had a presence at the gathering since 1991. This dry camping trip is a blast.
Over 100,000 RV's dry camping in the desert
Quartzsite AZ 2018
Last Chair standing
camp was broken down on Tuesday and only one chair remained. Chances are it one of he guys.
Our new to us RZR cars
These Polaris brand go carts are the most fun you can have on four wheels outside of the back seat. So much fun that we bent in the floor pan rail, cracked a steer tire A arm, lost a hood, ripped 2 tires, hammered the shock brackets and ate up 20 gallons of fuel. A small price to pay for 8 wonderful afternoon trips to the far reaches of the desert in areas I would not be able to hike to in a day. If you ever get a chance to get to an event where we have our rzr cars, ask us for a ride and hold on for some fun. Sorry, no back seat
The Big Tent
As you can see there is every possible brand of RV at the tent and you can get deep fried anything at one of the 50 food concessions outside. This is a must if you ever get to AZ in January. Across the 10 freeway the rv hesteria continues. One dealer brags that they sell more then 15 million dollars of class A pusher diesels every week during the 3 month winter season. Great place to people watch. Mostly retired folks from different social groups having the best time of their lives. Everyone knows us out there and everyone cares to make sure our group is welcomed. for a guns and ammo state, the place is warm
This year we had wonderful weather which attracted 88 rigs for the first weekend and less than 40 for the second weekend. The weather got better as the days passed. By the time we pulled up camp the temps were in the mid 80's. Early 4 am mornings were surprisingly warmer than sunrise and my guess is that the sun heat caused wind that added a chill to the air. This year was a typical fantastic example of January in Arizona.
Friday Saturday and Sunday mornings we set up a coffee bar complete with bagels and choice bagels toppings.Morning Coffee with RainbowRV is a great way to meet new friends and plan your day with company.Tim and I find that Coffee setup is well worth our early wake up and a bit of attention.We keep a good record of the coffee and bagel count to help with future event ordering but with the weather and no need to sign up to this event it is always a shot in the dark. Last year we sent our leftover bagels to the TOW group. This year we served over 17 dozen bagels and brewed 11 of our 60-cup coffee pots.
Tim labors a bunch of effort in setting up the camp and potlucks. Promotions, signage, tables, trash cans, breakfast shopping, forks, knifes, spoons, etc. Details like table skirts ,camp layout and his signature light display all add to the atmosphere to make the gathering special. GoodLuck PotLucks are usually scheduled for 6:pm on Friday and Saturday nights both weekend. The idea of breaking bread together is a basic family social tradition. It is unfortunate that some members are dawn away from our group table by bully organizers, but everyone is welcome and we encourage participation to promote group fellowship. Sunday Night impromptu potlucks often happen and usually bear the same unbelievable bounty.
'The Tent' a Quartzsite catch phrase referring to a huge carnival tent with vendors inside and countless rv dealers and food concessions in the perimeter. The tent is a cool place to visit and people watch.The vendors are a bit LED-light and tire-pressure-monitor redundant but worth a visit each year if just to say "I did the tent already".
Gem show, rock hound, desert-bohemian are a few more terms. Gem and rock hounds are an entire separate Quartzsite weekend show but they overlap and for me a visit to the vendors is interesting as a spectator to that art. Some of the crafts are unique but I have little knowledge in the products or the arts that encompass that area. Desert Bohemians are an interesting group of 20 something kids wearing hemp clothing dreadlocks and bare feet. Not sure where they live but for sure an interesting group. I tried to get into a conversation with one guy but he seemed a bit guarded with information and I did not want to make him uncomfortable.
RZR is a brand of offroad cars. Tim and I started out riding dirt bikes back in the 1990's, matriculated up to four wheel quads and now run off road in Polaris brand Rzr cars. Pronounced razor these 4 wheel drive cars are 64 inch wide and packed with enough horsepower to run up the side of a rock mountain at 60 miles per hour. We traded in the quads with hope that the rzr roll cage and seat belts would be added protection.The BLM has endless trails and mining roads that we explored every chance we had during the trip. We drove 270 miles each on the trails. So much cool stuff to see that is only accessible by a 20 mile hike or rzr trip.