Dave and Leslie are arriving this morning. Last summer while visiting family in Edmonton Alberta we got an email from Dave. He said that he had been following our blog and that they lived a couple of hours away in Bonneyville and would love to meet us and take us quadding. We had a fabulous time with them and their friends.
At 11:00 Dave called...they had just arrived at La Posa South, so Steve went out to meet them at the garbage bins and escort them to our spot. After big hugs, we sat and chatted for a bit and then decided to go into town...time for lunch and a tour of Q.
This old vehicle was parked outside of K and B Tools...
The Hi Jolly Memorial at the cemetery in Quartzsite pays tribute to Hadji Ali, one of several camel drivers brought over by the U.S. Army in a failed attempt to introduce camels to the American Southwest. After the experiment was abandoned, Ali was the only driver to remain in Arizona. He took up prospecting, and became known to locals as “Hi Jolly”
(Click to enlarge photo)
A community working together to make a child's dream come true. Celia's Rainbow Gardens, located in the Quartzsite Town Park encompasses 8 acres of the 40 acre park. The gardens were inspired by the dreams of Celia Winer, an 8-year old girl whose goal in life was to make the world a better place. Her love of nature, her desire to save the environment, and dreams of people working together have been taken to heart by this little desert community.
All plants, trees, cacti etc. will eventually have identification markers, and educational displays will also be included along the trails...While the Garden is still a work in progress, you may go out there at any time to look around and see what is happening. Visitors who have been there before will notice a lot of changes, and there will be much more done by the end of this season. If you have never been there before, please feel free to come out and see what can be done with many helping hands and hearts....
Click to read more...Celia's Story
Larry Eardman and another miner didn't get along and used to have shootouts. There is a tunnel in the cabin that allowed Larry to escape the cabin and come up behind it. In the above photo above Leslie is a horseshoe facing down instead of up. Apparently if you were a man and went beyond his door your luck ran out as you might get shot! If you were a woman he would answer the door naked! There are 6 1/2 miles of tunnels and enough well preserved stored lumber left in them to build 2 houses. Too many more stories to remember but there is a book available on this area that Steve said might be available at the museum so we're going to look for it. We spent quite a bit of time there listening to him...very interesting!There are metal rods sticking out of the hilltop that used to have lights on them to attract UFO's that were apparently common back in the day...
Our next stop was at the Quartzsite Museum next to Silly Al's on Main Street.
We were in for another history lesson...the fellow at the museum took us through, explaining about all of the exhibits, along with stories about the area. Oh yeah, they had what we thought might be the book but it wasn't just about Erdman and at $35, we thought it was a little pricey...especially if we weren't even sure is was the right one.The exterior of the museum was built around the original adobe building to protect it from the elements. Our guide said the Yuma Prison and this building are the oldest in Arizona.
With our tummies full, we headed home and sat visiting a little longer...until it was time for Dave and Leslie to head back to Phoenix. Although it was a short visit, we managed to pack quite a bit in and had such a fun time with them! Great seeing you both! Look forward to the next time our paths cross...and you're full-timers too in 2018!
After they left, we chilled for a bit and then at 5:00 we walked down to Harry and Vicki's place. They invited us over for a goodbye dinner...they are leaving Saturday.
As we walked by Jim and Barb's old spot, Steve took this picture...it's still empty you guys, we're here until March 13...come on back for one final visit!We sat outside chatting while Harry grilled a Tri-Tip on the barbecue...then we headed inside and sat down to a delicious dinner.
Thanks very much Harry and Vicki...it has been great spending time with you both!We were home before 8:00...exhausted! Just can't take those late nights anymore...it was after 11:30 before we got to bed last night!
Thursday morning Steve went out to work on the boat loader on the truck. He had started the other day but had to get new bolts at the hardware store and with company coming, ran out of time. Every time the truck is serviced the boat loader has to be unbolted and pulled forward so the truck cab can be tilted forward. Over the years the various dealers I guess misplace our original bolts and substitute whatever they have kicking around. Time and time again these bolts have come loose and fallen off even though Steve's learned to check them. In the photo the bolt on the angle bracket is that bolt. Now this was a first...the bolt you see in the slot is the one that wore through and pulled out making it unusable. Steve had to drill a hole through the whole assembly and used a 3" bolt to connect the angle bracket.
While he was finishing up with that, I deflated the air bed inside the box and put it away. Oh...and I also found 15 cents on the floor. Thanks for the tip Dave! :-)
Once Steve had put everything back in the box (that he had taken out to make room for the airbed), we had lunch and then headed off to Parker. Amazing how green everything is!It was after 5:00 by the time we got home. I was glad that I had picked up a roasted chicken from Safeway...made for a quick, easy dinner!
It was so much fun to spend some time with you. Glad we took a road trip out there. Amazing how much we packed in to the short time we were there. Sorry about the 15 cent tip. The accommodations and hospitality were worth a far larger tip! So comfortable that the only way for us to see the sunrise was in the pictures :) Thanks for everything. We really look forward to seeing you again down the road.
ReplyDeleteLes and Dave
You are more than welcome! It was a great time!
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