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Tag: desert healing

It’s been a lovely desert winter now time to move on

desert sunset clouds BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaI’ve enjoyed three months living in the Sonoran Desert of southern Arizona yet all good things seem to come to end and it’s time to move on.

Doug jeep motorhome leaving BLM Darby Well Road Ajo Arizona“I think I’m alone now, there doesn’t seem to be anyone around”…”  “…the beating of my heart is the only sound.”  Replaced with: the humming of the bees is the only sound.  The original song by Tommy James and the Shondells became an earworm as I watched Doug pull out.

sunset crescent moon Venus BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaHowever, that’s not entirely true as there are still a few RVs around who I can barely see, and that’s OK.

desert sunset clouds BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaI enjoyed the perfect birthday, quietly, in the desert, hundreds of well wishes, will forever be known as my Corona Birthday without the beer.  I ate hotdogs for lunch.  Don’t judge me, I grew up in the Chicago area and don’t want to know what’s in them.  No cake because I forgot to buy some.  Thank goodness for ice cream.  And thanks to all of you.

Ocotillo yellow Brittlebush flowers Palo Verde tree BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaWent for a nice afternoon walk.

Chrysocolla rock BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaI still didn’t find any crested cactus but I did find a nice rock vein of turquoise and chrysocolla with a claim marker.

tip of Saguaro cactus arm BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaMade a video of my place.

Jackrabbit ears desert BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaSo much on my mind when I just want to soak in the desert.  Yet this week’s temperatures are rising into the mid 80s which makes my little house like a sauna.  Don’t want to cook the cat and neither of us have a cooling system with big ears.

desert sunset clouds BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaSome might say I should stay in place, home.  Yet after living in this 8 x 12 foot camper for six months, this is home wherever it is.

cholla saguaro palo verde mine tailings BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaAnd now I’m called back to the lands of civilization and people.  So far, Bryce Canyon National Park is still open.  The visitor center and most other services are closed.  No fees being collected keeps employees safe from interacting.  Numbers of vehicles have dropped immensely.  Between March 17th and 27th visitation went from ~1000 cars/day to ~500 cars/day.  My job will be different than usual.  I will spend time on assigned projects to work on at home, and that’s all I know right now.

desert Black Mountain BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaSo it’s time to say goodbye to Black Mountain and coddiwomple northwards along a reverse route from last fall.  I will miss this delightful desert and the apricity that helped me heal.  It’s been a lovely holiday, when the fridge worked correctly and before this current mess.

I won’t miss those noisy military jets that I feel breaking the deserquies.  It literally hurts my head.  I will miss the Redtail hawk soaring circles in search of a meal.  I won’t miss the dust (and noise) kicked up by the OHV who are less in numbers than the Border Patrol rigs bombing down the gravel road.  I will miss the bobble of Gamble Quail scampering from bush to bush, the sweet Happy Birthday song of the Cactus Wren, and even the tap of the Gila Woodpecker on my camper.  I will miss the amazing desert sunsets.

Saguaro desert sunset clouds BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaBut it is time to move on and I don’t know what to expect once on the road.

truckcamper Belly Acres RV Park Ajo ArizonaStayed Monday night at Belly Acres RV Park in Ajo where I dumped tanks, took on water, charged everything, and took a long hot shower.  My view encompasses the impound and junkyard.

junkyard behind truckcamper Belly Acres RV Park Ajo ArizonaJello plan is boondock along Vulture Mine Road near Wickenburg where I can pick up my mail.  Then an appointment in Congress for oil change, two new tires, and retrieve the other propane tank.  Then possibly boondock near there over the weekend.  Next week, it’s time to move on further north to Utah.

sunset wavy clouds BLM Darby Well Road Ajo ArizonaI am looking forward to new environments, landscapes, birds, and sunsets while continuing to social distance as much as possible.

Gaelyn in camper Belly Acres RV Park Ajo ArizonaHope everyone is well.  Stay safe.  Stay home.  (BTW, I cleaned the mirror Joann.)

 

Deserquies (n) – silence only found in the desert. [I made up this word from the root of desert and quiet.]

Arizona, Places I've been, RV life, Sonoran desert, United States , , , 37 Comments

Watching and walking as the desert calls at Kofa NWR

Saguaro cactus desert Kofa Mountains BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaFeels like my winter life is getting closer to normal as I spend my January watching and walking as the desert calls and the weather allows.  The wind comes about every other day.

My mobile lifestyle allows me to BE dry camped—off grid—on this BLM managed piece of the Sonoran Desert adjacent to Kofa NWR free for 14 days.  It just is where I’m living at the time, doing what I like, with no particular time schedule.  Still sleeping in and not getting up for sunrise.  Actually, I frequently wake up in time for sunrise, note there are no clouds, and snuggle right back under the covers, Sierra curled by my side.

Ocotillo Saguaro Palo Verde desert clouds sunburst Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

Ocotillo Palo Verde clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaThe desert calls me to walk during the warmest part of the winter day in the 60°s.  Not usually the best light for photography unless there are clouds to give visual interest to the otherwise famous clear blue Arizona sky.

desert Kofa Mountains reverse sunset clouds moon Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

desert mountains sunset clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

desert mountains sunset clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

Ocotillo desert Kofa Mountains sunset clouds moon Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaPlus Southwest sunsets carry their own fame.  And those I’m awake for, and sometimes bundled up enough to get outside.

desert Kofa Mountains Earth shadow moon Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

mountains sunset clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaYet winter wind can be quite chilling in the desert creating an uncomfortable crispness to the air after the sun goes down.

Saguaro cactus Palo Verde desert Kofa Mountains clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaWhen there’s no chilly wind I get my healing apricity with some walking exercise.  One afternoon I sauntered for almost three hours and never left sight of camp.  I was checking out the scenery, looking at rocks, and following trails for another possible place to camp on the north side of the road.  Less RVs in my view.

Saguaro cactus Palo Verde desert Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaThe Palo Verde frequently acts as a shade providing nursery tree for Saguaro cactus. Then as the cactus grow taller and demand more water they often outcompete the tree and it dies. Not this survivor Palo Verde at 30+ feet tall even with mistletoe growing in its crown.

Palo Verde desert Kofa Mountains clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

Kofa Mountains light & shadow clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaClouds blew in the day before actual full moon rise.  That’s when I like to scope out exactly where to see the moon on the horizon.  I watched the changing light, shadows, and colors of the Kofa Mountains to the east while the sun passed through the day.  Getting crowded out here.  Late in the afternoon two trailers set up two lanes behind me to the SSW.  Then a big 5th-wheel backed in to the south and almost out of sight behind the trees also two lanes over.  Interesting to watch the configuration of vehicles.  I saw a Smart car towing a small flatbed trailer and didn’t get a photo.

desert Kofa Mountains moon clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaI watched for the moon through clouds.

desert mountains sunset clouds crepuscular rays Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaThen turned around for sunset’s silver lining and crepuscular rays.

As I began my second week without moving the truck I thought about driving the 30 minutes to town for a paid shower at the Quartzsite laundromat.  But below 55° felt cold to me with NW wind gusts up to 30mph so I did not feel like going out.  Hey, I live alone so it’s OK to be a dirtbag at least sometimes.

truckcamper Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaWatch what you ask for.  Mid-afternoon, I started to smell propane like a tank is almost empty so when it went off I wasn’t surprised.  I just turned on the other tank, presumably full, and nothing happened.  It wouldn’t work.  WTF?  So I had to go to town to either fill the tank that was working and now empty or stay at a RV Park for electricity to keep the full fridge/freezer working.  While getting propane I was reminded these new fangled tank valves have to be opened very slowly or they register as a leak and won’t turn on until they reset, and that is an undetermined amount of time.  It’s a safety thing.  It worked.

desert late light Kofa Mountains Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaNow it’s good for over a week.  I headed back to Palm Canyon and parked in a slightly different place just before dusk.

full wolf moon rising Kofa Mountains Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

full wolf moon rising Kofa Mountains Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaI should have taken the tripod out but settled with just a few hand-held shots of the Wolf moon rising over a hill in the distance.  I will continue to practice night photography, especially if it’s not cold.

desert late light Kofa Mountains Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaLike it was the next day with chill hair-blowing wind when I stayed mostly indoors watching the Kofa Mountains change color over the moving light of the day.

Creosote bush Saguaro cactus desert Kofa Mountains BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

dead tree Saguaro cactus desert Kofa Mountains BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaThis followed by a gorgeous day of no wind, mid-60°s afternoon when the desert calls, “Visit the Saguaros.”

Saguaro cactus arms BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge Arizona

Saguaro cactus Kofa Mountains BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaMeet the cactus people, each so unique you will soon know them by name.

desert RVs Kofa Mountains clouds Palm Canyon Road BLM Kofa National Wildlife Refuge ArizonaHave I been here too long? Excuse me, I have to go, the desert calls.

Saguaro cactus skeletonInside a dead Saguaro cactus

 

OK, maybe you already looked it up, but… “dirtbag – A person who is committed to a given … lifestyle to the point of abandoning employment and other societal norms in order to pursue said lifestyle.”

 

Big RV show 18-25 Quartzsite Arizona

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MscerVCt-tA&feature=share     documentary about Quartzsite

Arizona, Kofa NWR, RV lifestyle , , , 26 Comments

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