Brief return to Quartzsite for heat(er)

February 27 (Tuesday)
We reluctantly left Lost Dutchman State Park today. We waited until the last possible moment before the Rangers gave us the boot. We stopped at the dump station to empty tanks and take on some more fresh water. We got out just before the noon deadline.

Apache Junction

Entering the 202

They sure decorate the freeways down here.

Lots of flowers

Downtown Phoenix

Relatively light traffic for a big city

A bit congested where the 202 meets the I10.

The 303 and I10. See the decorated uprights?

Midday seems to be a pretty good time to make your way through the Phoenix are traffic. We got onto the 202 and headed toward the I10 that would take us west toward Quartzsite.

Unique form of camping.

But I bet it's paid for!

These folks were form Michigan. We missed the tow vehicle but it was an old panel van from the 40's or 50's.

We stopped for lunch at a rest stop then headed to our final stop on Dome Rock Road. We found a spot suitable for the night and managed to get the trailer set up just as a sprinkle of rain fell. It didn't last long and was followed by a nice rainbow. The sun shone for a bit but the wind was very chilly. We hunkered down for a cold night. We used the last one pound bottle of propane for the Buddy heater. Tomorrow we get a new blue flame heater installed!

Our site at Dome Rock Tuesday night.

A rainbow after a brief shower.

Sun starting to shine on the mountains to the southwest.

Sunset Tuesday night.

Clearing skies!

February 28 (Wednesday)
The sun shone and the wind died down so we had a very nice start to the day. Cold, but nice.

We had a noon appointment at RV Lifestyles but we were there well before 11 AM in hopes they might squeeze us in sooner. No such luck. In fact their forklift was being repaired so we couldn't just drop the trailer and leave. So we waited until nearly 1230 before we could back the trailer into the bay and unhook.

We had some errands to do. First was the Miner's Depot to talk to the owner of the shop about my metal detector. He went over some operational items with me and gave me a free carrying case. He was out of them when I bought the detector.

Next stop was RV Pitstop to fill a propane cylinder, then time for lunch. We ended up way back at the other end of town at the X3 Family restaurant. It was busy but we got seated right away and enjoyed a nice lunch.

I needed fuel for the truck so back down Main street to the Chevron. We forgot to drop off the mail at the post office on the way so that will have to wait until Bullhead City. We stopped off at Tyson Wells market and found the discount food tent we liked. We bought some unhealthy candy and headed back to Dome Rock BLM to scout out another spot for tonight. We found a good spot and headed back to RV Lifestyles.

They had not yet finished the trailer so had a good look around the store. Nothing tempted me, thankfully. Finally nearly 4:30 we we had the heater installed, the demo done, the bill paid and we were off to Dome Rock.

There is propane plumbing below the furnace and hot water tank. Below the electrical connection (to the right of the furnace) is space to drill into the floor.

The tech added anothe tee and sent the heater supply line up through the floor.

Supply line up from the outside and then over to the outlet port. The furnace is the big grey metal box. The electrical input line ibesdie the new propane hose.

Through the cupboards. A valve and quick-connect coupler port. I'll get a cover to keep dirt out of the coupler.

I have twelve feet of rubber hose so I can place the heater at point of need.
(Bill/George - I have a built in handle!)
I'll add a hook to hang the hose.

10,000 btu's of heat! It's bigger than the Buddy heater, but there is a place to store it at the end of the island.

Hard to see the flame, but it's nice and toasty warm!
Just be sure to leave a window open when the fire is on.

The spot we scouted was still open so a quick setup and time to play with the metal detector. I found a few pieces of trash and then my big discovery for the day was a copper keepsake for a National Park in Arkansas (sorry, no picture). No real value, but it's the thrill of the hunt that is the fun of this hobby.

So here I sit in the basking warmth of our new blue flame heater. Tomorrow we head to Bullhead City. This was a quick side trip to Quartzsite, but sure nice to see my Sonoran Lady one more time. I missed her.

Moonrise

Sunset glow

Long-legged photographer

Our site tonight at Dome Rock

....and that was Our View From Here!