"OOB'ed" in Quartzsite

Posted from Casa Grande, AZ
(Click on Pics to Enlarge)

It's not really as bad as it sounds.  Really.

We decided to take a few days and visit Quartzsite recently for two main reasons.  The first was that our coach had been sitting for 3 months and it needed to be run on the highway for a bit.  Taking Casa Grande to Gila Bend up to Interstate 10 and west to Quartzsite was slightly over 3 hours driving time, so that part was fulfilled.  Secondly, we decided to join David  Bott's first gathering at Quartzsite. He named this the OOB Fest because his very informative blog is entitled Outside Our Bubble. If you like quadcopter videography, take a look at his blog.  He made a very cool video of our group one evening.

 Front Side

Here's Karen holding one of the T-shirts David and his wife supplied to all in attendance.

Back Side

There were originally 42 or 43 rigs which indicated they would be in attendance, but I believe the final count while we were there from Jan. 14-17 was somewhere in the high 20s.

We arrived shortly after noon on Thursday and were parked right next to David's rig (not sure why), set up our site in the desert, and joined a bunch of other folks for an informal "meet and greet" sitting around talking.

Each evening many folks gathered around the centrally positioned fire ring to chat and solve the problems of the world.

Saturday was the opening of the "Big RV Tent" in town.  Karen wanted to take a look at some of the gems and minerals for sale at a huge area near Tyson Wells just west of the Big RV Tent area.  I don't know much about rocks and geology, but I'm sure that someone who has a passion for these types of interests would be thrilled.  We walked around this vendor area for a bit and Karen purchased a few small items for jewelry and display items.

Although we really weren't looking for any RV-related items, we decided to subject ourselves to the crowded area that is the "Big RV Tent".  There was certainly a variety of RV and non-RV things for sale. (Did I mention crowded?)

There certainly was no shortage of food vendors on site.  We did do a bit of "purchasing" in this area.

Quartzsite draws an "unusual" group of folks. I'm certain that number increases when the RV Show rolls into town.

We finally left the crowds and business of the tent area and traveled east on Kuehn Road to meet up with a fellow Palm Creek resident who was staying with the SKPs in "Boomerville.  After a short drive on some dusty roads we met up with Len at the entrance to "Boomerville".

Len's MH is just past the Airstream on the right side of this picture.

Though not that crowded yet, many rigs had already arrived to stake their spot.  Here's a picture looking west with some of the Boomers in the foreground.

Getting back to the OOB Fest, Saturday night was designated as potluck dinner night.  I can say with certainty that there was no shortage of food.

Everyone seemed very content (and full) as we sat around the fire circle chatting and getting to know one another a bit.

A very "cool" thing that David had planned was an outdoor evening movie.  Here he is setting up the rear projector and screen.

In David's past life he had business ties with Dish Network.  He invited them out to movie night with us.  They provided the excellent sound system for the movie and a free promotional giveaway to anyone who wanted to take home a very cute stuffed "Joey" to advertise the Dish Hopper system.

 

We left on Sunday to return to Casa Grande, but I'll have to say that we thoroughly enjoyed "OOB Fest 2016".  Thank you to David and Brenda Bott for the great hospitality and planning of this event.

If you're an RVer and you've never been to Quartzsite, you really should try it at least once.  I've heard that you'll either love it or hate it.  I can honestly say that I was pleasantly surprised and would probably do it again.  The weather was very nice during our stay and it was really only windy one evening.  I understand from some "old timers" that some years have been very windy in the past.

We're safely back in Palm Creek Golf and RV Resort again.  Probably here until the middle of April before heading out again.

Thanks for stopping by to take a look!