Heat

It's hot east of Yuma and the almost continuous thundering of jets spoils what few quiets there are between the blamming of the target shooters.

The sign says ENTERING PUBLIC LANDS STAY ON DESIGNATED ROUTES and the area is a maze of tracks around and between the creosotes.

In Miracles of Life, (link is to Wiki article) published in 2008, J.G. Ballard eloquently describes the contrasts between the Shanghai of his youth and lunch at Cannes when Holly Hunter took umbrage when a journalist asked her why she "was in such shit." (the movie Crash)

His remarks on the inability of Americans to appreciate his satire of their fascination with gratuitous violence & violent sex are followed closely with observation that our politics are increasingly influenced by right-wingers, old-world religionists "the sound of freedom."

I'm looking forward to Desert Kinkfest in Quartzsite.  Daytime temps should obviate the need for anything more than shoes, a water-soaked shirt and a hat.

Seeking Sunshine

In Tucson they were predicting three days of rain. Rain prompts thoughts of a (slightly) larger vehicle; there's only so much you can do in 5 feet by 10 feet. The forecast for Yuma was for only ONE day of rain, then sunshine. Rather than take the time to find a new rig, I decided to "Go West, old man."

I got my usual late start Wednesday, but made it to a spot in the wilds a little west of where 84 intersects with I-8; it was rainin' tuh beat the band.

Thursday morning, short on supplies, I left everythin' under the tarp and drove to Mariposa where, within a couple uh ours, I wuz good-tuh-go.

Back at camp, the goddess intervened with a 20-minute reprieve....just long enough to pack up. (Women are SO beneficent!) Trundling along, sundown found us looking hopefully at a thinning cloud cover and settling in to a sweet little camp next to some mesquite trees about 70 miles to Yuma. The rain stopped long enough to get everything UNpacked, UNder cover and ACcessorize it all with the OBligatory LAtrine (Hit ain't no fun diggin' at 6:30 a.m., 'specially iffen hits rainin'). The rain continued on and off during the night, but it lacked the unrelenting steadiness that had felt like ark-building time further east.

Now, this morning, it's still pretty cloudy, but the sun is working hard to break through. There's still the occasional sprizter, but you can tell it's gonna be a Bright, bright, sunshiney dayyyyyyyyy! 

Yuma today for sure!

Hot Springs LTVA - West of Yuma

Steve Hunter - Campground Host

Hot Springs Long-term Visitor Area (LTVA) is about fifteen miles East of El Centro, California on interstate eight.

The springs are 75 feet behind two  concrete-block pit toilets that double as changing rooms. The water comes out of the ground at 118 degrees Fahrenheit (47.7 C), but is cooled to 103 (39.4 C) by management. There's a lawn-sprinkler like device for the kiddies and two cement tubs. The larger tub can hold half a dozen friends or four strangers. The smaller, cooler tub is a one-person or "intimates" deal. The rules ask you to shower before getting in.

But then there's the oasis!!! Immediately adjacent to the springs, it's 80 feet across, with reeds, palms swaying in the breeze and (Lucky Herrmann!) a lovely bathing beauty.

The springs are free. Swimsuits are required.

Across the street is the LTVA. Steve Hunter, the campground host, had spent the previous 30 years in the area and gave me a list of places to visit that'll keep me busy for a while.

The LTVA permit is good for eight different LTVAs in Arizona and California.

Bathing Beauty

$180.00 per season or $60.00/28 days or $40.00 for 14 days.

Stark....raving...blue! Yuma!

West of Quartzite, Arizona

Arching overhead from horizon to horizon, poked from below by crags borrowed from the moon. The ocotillo are so fluffly their spines are hidden. Everything has a thorn. The pace is pokey too.






A few miles south of Lake Havasu City we reached clothing-optional warm. I chose a promontory that jutted out from the Bill Williams Mountains' bajada.

Fred Williams Mountains bajada

The next day a herd of ATVs went by with shouts of welcome to the "land of perfect weather." It was too...except for their noise.

We arrived in Quartzite near sundown and had to settle for a camp kinda close to the freeway. But the fine mix of saguaro and teddybear cholla leant an exotic aire to the landscaping. The night was a bit chilly.

Blythe was better. Temperatures were tolerable and there's room enough to escape the noise.

I read about Wonderland of Rocks in  Joshua Tree Nat'l Park and went to see. The Ranger said the trees need a hard freeze in order to bloom and the one that was closing in would probably do it. I watched the clouds roll in as the temperature plummeted. I packed up and ran....to Yuma.

Where I hit gold! More desert than you can shake a stick at! Land spreadin' out far & wide. But the wind!!

In the Historic District I discovered Bandanna Books. (Link is to a map. They don't have a website.)

Neat & Tidy - Right Aisle

Steve, a poker-player since age 7, bought it last December. He claims he don't know nuthin' 'bout books. Well *somebody* does...or did. For the moment at least, he has the finest collection on sexuality this side of Xavier Hollander. I chose a pristine  version of Mead's Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies and was tempted by a nice copy (no stuck pages) of the The Art of Sexual Ecstasy: The Path of Sacred Sexuality for Western Lovers.

Neat & Tidy - Office Aisle

The art section'd been ravaged by a horde of seminarists from nearby Yuma Art Center, but Steve said it'd be replenished in a few days.

Ravaged Art!!

Steve and Wife

Yuma awaits....you.