Complain, complain, complain.
I pulled into the VFW and drove through its parking lot to the BLM boondocking area next door. As I had figured, it was about half empty. A lot of folks can't wait to get to the "Big Show," so they leave boondocking areas like the VFW early to partake of all the excitement going on at Quartzsite this time of year.
What kind of excitement, you may ask? Most of the exhilaration consists of attending numerous gigantic flea markets scattered around the area, the thrill of no parking spaces available anywhere you want to go, long lines at gas stations, various Boondocking groups circling their RVs and building a bonfire in the middle, crowded restaurants, boondocking neighbors closer than you prefer, and higher prices for everything because of the crowds…. And who wouldn't want to participate in all that? Me, for one, but giving it some thought, there might be a picture or two worth taking.
speaking of pictures I do like to take photos of sunrises and sunsets, but the VFW boondocking area is not a great place for that. There are too many big trees on one side and too many mountains on the other side, so it's rare for me to get a decent sunrise or sunset picture while here.
I stopped at McDonald's on the way to Yuma and bought their basic lunch meal, a hamburger, fries, and a small soda, which cost $15. That seems expensive to me, and if it's a family of four, it must cost 50 or $60 to stop and buy the family a hamburger. I know, I know, I'm old enough to remember 25-cent hamburgers at McDonald's, and now they're more than 10 times that, and even though I wasn't making much money in those days, I don't think people are making 10 times as much as I was then. I don't know how families can afford these prices.
Theboondork
My camping spot at Dateland campground… Finally, some 70° weather. It’s good to be back in the desert.
The train tracks almost run right through the campground at Dateland. I didn’t get any pictures of the trains; they didn’t seem to be running during the daytime, but as soon as it got too dark for me to take a picture, they started going by every half hour.
To see a genuine desert mirage, look at the railroad tracks in the background, which magically turn into a pool of cool, clear, lifesaving water.
The VFW boondocking area. As I’ve said, this is actually BLM land, but since we all have to drive right through the VFW parking lot to get to it, it’s always been known as VFW boondocking.
This is not all of the boondocking land, and it looks about half-full.
My boondocking spot at the VFW boondocking area.