Problem Solving, Long Hike In The LTVA and Meeting Fellow RV Bloggers.

Our Location today is Quartzsite, Arizona, U.S.A. 

Since last night was our first night spent “Off the Grid” in a LTVA we experienced something we have never had before, Silence. If anyone is driving through the LTVA at night you don’t hear them and we are back so far from Highway 95 you can’t hear that traffic either. The only lights other than the stars and moon was that of the security lights on the occasional RV. Even the wind seemed less intense with our being parked between the surrounding mountains. We didn’t have this kind of peacefulness while we were in the RV Park. Wow was this Wonderful! 

It's coming!

I still managed to be up by 7:00 MST but just wasn’t in the mood for going outside that early. With the 41 F (5 C) outside temperature and my Raynaud’s making me feel like a block of ice I simply got an early start on my morning reading before Kathy would join me. When she did get up there was No Electric Fireplace to warm her and I hadn’t brought the cylinders in to use on our Big Buddy Heater so being the trooper Kathy is she didn’t want me to fire up the furnace she not only put her housecoat on but also used a throw blanket to keep her shoulders warm. 

Our first Sunrise in the LTVA.

Once we’d finished breakfast we did our usual morning reading which includes all the recent posts on our Sidebar. Like I have said many times if you are there and have posted your Blog I will read it. I try to comment on the ones that I find interesting or can give advice. I did that to a few blogs this morning some of which said they were presently camped in La Posa South LTVA. Others I have commented on for years and I am suddenly being blocked by Blogger. It asks for me to “Choose a Profile” from an Empty Drop-Down Box that will not allow any kind of Profile to be entered. Marsha, Michelle and a Dozen others your blogs are not letting me comment. 

Love these clouds

After our inside chores were completed I had to do some trouble shooting outside. It seems that the Brand-New Solenoids that I installed to activate our Inverters have both decided to stop working. The Solenoids act as a Heavy-Duty Switch that allows the Electricity from the Batteries to give power to the Inverters. To operate the Solenoid a smaller switch with power is needed to activate the Magnetic Coil inside the Solenoid to close the contacts so the Batteries can feed power to the Inverter. Try as I might after two hours this morning I just could not get them to function. Temporarily I simply By-Passed the Solenoids and will operate the Inverters using the Battery Disconnect Switches that were installed as Safety for when I might need to work on the Inverters. How Ironic! 

Going to touch those Mountains.

After having lunch Kathy finally gave in to my urging to come outside and enjoy the Warm Sunshine we had come to Arizona to experience. All the vendors and the locals that we have spoken to in Quartzsite cannot believe how cold and wet this winter has been in this area. There have been maybe a dozen days since we left Windsor to come south that we have not been cold and today was one of them. I finally stopped what I was doing and sat with Kathy and talked about this trip being what we had hoped it was going to be from Day One. 

Traveling through the washes.

Since we haven’t been doing much walking except in stores Kathy said she wanted to go touch the mountains so we started walking deeper into the LTVA. We were just plain tired of always being busy working on something or running errands and just sitting outside wasn’t cutting it. We walked past Barb’s Site from Me and My Dog and noticed she had gone to run an errand but left her markings so no body would take her spot. We walked so far back into the LTVA that we couldn’t see some of the trailers that had blocked our view of our Home. If we couldn’t see them we surely couldn’t see the Wind Sock that was supposed to be our Guiding Light. I was also in search of RVs that I might recognize as belonging to fellow RV Bloggers. 



We left the gravel covered area that most RVs use as their sites and started walking north through some of the washes. Since we were enjoying the warmth of the sun and we began noticing Snake Burrows in some of the washes so we started keeping our eyes on the ground so we wouldn’t have any surprises. We’d been walking for nearly an hour, hadn't reached the mountains and weren’t seeing anymore RVs where we were walking when we decided to turn around and head back Home. For a first walk like that in a long time we walked over three miles taking over two hours to do it in and only standing still when we stopped for a drink of water from our bottles. When we had left for our walk the sun felt so warm we had left our jackets behind, but the wind had changed direction and even though we were in the bright sunlight we were starting to feel cold. 

Felt good to sit down for a rest.

Back Home a fresh round of water was served and our outdoor chairs looked very inviting. Kathy asked me to install our old camping mat while she went about making supper. I used our rake to move the larger rocks so there wouldn’t be any hidden tripping hazards underneath. 

Stew made from Leftovers, Salad and French Raspberry turn-overs.

For supper tonight Kathy had made a Beef Stew using up lots of Leftovers from the fridge. She also made a wonderful Salad using up the last of the head of Lettuce. She has found that by using a Large Plastic Knife to cut the Lettuce it doesn’t spoil like when she uses a Metal Knife. 

Love the Sunset

Wanting to get a nice Sunset Picture for today’s blog I went outside while Kathy stayed in out of the cold breeze. While standing by the side of the trailer I thought it strange that an ATV was about to pass between our trailer and the wash about fifty feet behind it. When it stopped five feet from me and asked if we were the Rousseau’s I knew we had been found by someone that knew we were here. 

Jim and Barb stopped in for a short visit.

It was Jim and Barb from Jim and Barb’s RV Adventure. I’ve been commenting on their blog for the last month and told them we were just down the road from them this morning. Their trailer was also one that I had searched for on our Hike this afternoon. Jim did his research and told Barb that the trailer he was looking at out their front window just had to be us. We talked for a short while but they were going to see some friends so I invited them back for our Campfire tomorrow evening.  

There's Jim and Barb's trailer on the other side of our truck.

Tomorrow we have some early errands to run before relaxing back Home in 66 F (19 C) warmth that we came here to enjoy. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy! 

It’s about time.

Krackers 

Joke of the Day 

I want to die peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather. 

Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.