Quartzsite

A couple of years ago I was invited by my cousin, LuAnn to visit with her and her father (Uncle Lou) in Quartzsite during the annual “rock show.”  That’s not a music concert, I mean real rocks.  At the time, I was not able to get away for the trip, and a few months later I saw a special by Huell Howser wherein he visited Quartzsite during the “Expo” and that cemented my desire to go and see what all the hullabaloo was about.

Yesterday, we drove to Quartzsite.  It is 185 miles from my driveway and from the California border it is 18 miles into Arizona on interstate 10.  We were on the road by 6:00 a.m. and by 7:30 we were having breakfast near the Coachella Valley, 77 feet above sea level and the home of that Hollywood legend, Bugs Bunny.

From Indio, it is a 27 mile climb to Chiriaco Summit at 1,715 feet above sea level.  20 miles beyond the summit, we passed Eagle Mountain and Desert Center and continued a slow descent for another 50 miles to reach the Colorado River and the CA/AZ border at 257 feet above sea level.  The 18 miles from there to Quartzsite took us back up to an elevation of 1,200 feet but dropped back to 925 by the time we entered the town.

Although the event in Quartzsite is mostly about rocks, there are other goods on display also.  Antiques, books, yard-art, and lots of tourist trappings.  I must say, these “rock-hound” people are the friendliest sort.  They love to talk about their craft and many of them can look at a piece of rock and tell you its country or state of origin, and what dig site produced it!  It was all really quite amazing and there are not many things in this world more beautiful than a cut & polished rock.

For the craftsman, there were folks selling raw materials.  Fifty gallon drums of rocks were very evident.  Even though we arrived late in the season and many of the vendors had packed up and headed for the “big show in Tuscon” we were not disappointed.  The rocks on display were dazzling and I had to show some serious restraint to avoid bringing home a truckload of them.

For a change of pace, we took an alternate route on our return trip.  From Blyth we followed the river north on route 95 to Vidal Junction.  I know Wyatt Earp had a ranch somewhere along that stretch of road, but I didn’t know its exact location.  At Vidal Junction we headed west on highway 62 through 29 Palms, Joshua Tree, Yucca Valley, and Morongo Valley.

Driving through those communities, I was reminded of the homesteading debacle that took place in the early 1950’s.  After WWII, under the 1938 "Baby Homestead Act,” many returning veterans filed claims on five acre parcels.  Part of the homestead requirements included building a 100 sq. ft. cabin and a 1 year residency.  10’ X 10’ buildings can still be clearly seen scattered on the hillsides as you drive through the area.

Sadly, I did not get to see my cousin LuAnn or my Uncle Lou, but all in all, it was a nice drive and the experiences in Quartzsite whet our appetites for some rock-hounding of our own.  We’ll see how that works out.