It was an easy drive back to Quartzsite. Even navigating through town to pick up my mail and packages was fairly simple, though traffic was certainly at its annual peak in anticipation of the Big Tent RV show. I rolled into camp, took my original spot, and everyone came out to tell me “Welcome home.”
I didn’t set up much of a camp, since I’m leaving in a few days for the Adventuring with Amanda meetup. I didn’t even detach the trailer. But I did pull the bike out, as well as a table and a couple of camp chairs for hanging out. About seven of us spontaneously piled into Dalane’s van to what she said is currently the best burger place in town, a food trailer called “Wings on Wheels” set up in Tyson Wells. We had a bit of a wild goose chase trying to find it. Rather than Dalane having a Swiss cheese memory, it turns out the trailer had actually moved several rows down from where it had been the last time she ate there. Also, it was closed. After checking out a few other places that were also closed, we ended up grabbing a bite from the food trailer at Beer Belly’s, which promptly closed behind us. It was only about 5:00 pm. Then we rolled back to camp and had lots of laughs around the campfire. Needless to say, all feelings of loneliness I was having at Imperial Dam were long gone.
I worked yesterday morning, then joined Dalane and Melissa, a new arrival, for a trip into town. I needed AA batteries for one of my new acquisitions, we wanted to see the so-called pow-wow happening in town and to give Wings on Wheels another try. Traffic in town was terrible. Nearly all of our errands were thwarted, except for my batteries. Dalane kept having trouble with the gas pumps (rather like me the other day). None of the places in town that are supposed to receive Western Union money transfers had that working, so Melissa couldn’t get hers. There was absolutely no parking at the pow-wow, but we were able to see from a distance that it was just another place for merchants to sell rocks and pretty stones, and nothing to do with an actual Indian pow-wow. We almost couldn’t even find parking at Tyson Wells, but we managed to squeeze into one last space in the back parking lot. That’s where our luck turned. Wings on Wheels was open. Dalane was right, it’s the best burger in town, even better than the Horney Toad, which was my previous favorite.
I dove into projects for the afternoon. What I needed the batteries for was my new weather station. I like keeping track of it, and this will tell me just how hard the wind is blowing and from what direction, as well as any rainfall we happen to get. It’s also good data to be able to report as a Skywarn weather spotter.
I took advantage of the extra length of the aluminum L-channel to mount the base for the outside sensor. A single thumbscrew lets me detach the rest of the sensor for travel, and then I’ll just have to adjust it so the solar panel faces south. I mounted the display to the wall inside the van, but I want to move it because I can’t read it unless I’m standing up right next to it. I can play with that.
I also installed some LED tail light bulbs on my bike to match the LED headlights. The tail light is about as bright as my brake light used to be, and the brake light is that much brighter. These bulbs also have a built-in flasher to blink the brake light three times before staying on, which will make me much more visible when I slow down. The internet said I had to dismantle the entire back of the bike to reach the tail light, but halfway through I realized I could just stick my hand in there to swap the bulbs. Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.
After I got the bike put back together, Melissa asked if I’d take her for a ride. Who am I to turn down an excuse for a ride? I took her on my loop through Parker, up the California side to Parker Dam with a stop at a scenic spot up there, and then back down the Arizona side to Quartzsite. It was a beautiful warm sunny day for a ride, and I’m glad she motivated me to go. I probably would’ve just stayed at camp otherwise.
There are more people in Quartzsite this year than I’ve ever seen. In 2021 the Canadian border was still closed, so snowbirds escaping the Great White North couldn’t come here. Things were still ramping up last year, but at least the Canadians were back. This year, though, life is back to normal, and everything is in full swing. I don’t care for the crowds, which is why I ran away to Imperial Dam in the first place. The traffic in town is crazy, and there simply isn’t parking in a lot of places. I hadn’t noticed how bad the parking problem was before since I usually hop on the bike and stuff it anywhere I can out of the way, but trying to park even Dalane’s small van was impossible at times.
And yet, the people in my camp are amazing. I missed people in general, but I really missed these people in particular. Is it worth tolerating the crowds to be with them? Quite possibly.
After Amanda’s meetup, she, Yellow Wolf, and I plan to go check out Skooliepalooza together. I feel a bit better dropping into such a large event with people I know rather than just showing up myself. After that, I’m not sure whether to continue avoiding the madness of Quartzsite until the snowbirds start to leave in a couple of weeks or tough it out for the sake of hanging out with my friends.
One thing that will force me to leave again is that my bike is due for an oil change and possibly some other maintenance. Oil changes on BLM land are a huge no-no due to the risk of spillage and pollution, so even though I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself, I need to take it to a shop. Since it’ll be there anyway, I could use a new back tire. I also suspect one of my fork seals may have sprung a leak, so I can get that checked out, too. Where I go will depend partly on where and when I can find a shop willing to work on it. I know there’s a dealer in Lake Havasu, and plenty of BLM land in the area I can camp out on while they work on the bike. Yuma, and returning to Imperial Dam, may also be an option. One of the Desert Ratt Pack is an avid rider and may be able to recommend a shop in that area, so we’ll see. In either case, there’s nowhere in Quartzsite to fix it, and it’s easier to get it done where I’m allowed to sit still for a while instead of trying to get it fixed during my summer travel — which I also have no idea where I’m going.
Unrelated, I woke up to find that one of the New England Riders administrators made my amazing sunset photo the cover photo for the group! Even though I’m far from New England, I’m still an active member of the group, because it’s one of the best motorcycle groups I’ve found anywhere. I figured they could use some warm thoughts while sitting through another snowstorm last week.
Smokey Da Van 