Anza-Borrego to Yuma to Ajo

 Time expired on our stay in the southern reaches of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in southern California.  Heading south to the small village of Ocotillo we picked up the I-8 and headed back east.  The rest area east of El Centro provided a place to dump, fill and deposit garbage as we made our way back to Sidewinder road, just outside of Yuma, Az

There is a mixture of BLM and private land in the area.  Some private land previously camped on had a few new 'no trespassing' signs along one edge, so we moved a bit further off road, past some land that used to have crops, but has been abandoned for decades, and found a nice quiet spot near a shallow wash.
 

 Not that appealing, but it gets high ratings for the convenient access to Yuma, and Los Algodones, Mx.

I hoped that my problems with getting Amazon stuff delivered would be solved by the convenience of the Amazon lockers scattered about Yuma, but it was not to be!  The shipping gods were still out to get me.  Right on schedule the package arrived at the lockers, and I went to pick it up - usually a simple task by scanning a bar code or entering a code.  Nope! Not this time.  Upon entering the code, I could hear the latch on one of the lockers clicking, but nothing popped open.  Numerous tries all failed, though I could narrow it down to one of about 3 lockers.  Well, I evnetually managed to get a helpful, partial English speaking person on the phone.  She re-booted the computer that controled the locker all to no avail.  But she could tell me exactly which locker was failing to open, and promised to expedite a replacement order.  One more try, knowing which locker door to wiggle, and voila, I managed to pry it open!

(Desert art off Ogilby rd)

I think that package was the one that contained a new USB plug that I mounted in a convenient spot right by the bed.  I did not even have to run new wiring, as there was an unused wire pair that used to be used to turn the inverter on and off - now accomplished via Bluetooth.  This one has two usb-A plugs and one C.  It came in a two-pack, so I have a spare one to install in the truck camper next summer.

Most of our time camped in this location involved mundane things like laundry, groceries, fuel, propane, and wandering through the required stores like Harbor Freight, CAL Ranch, Best Buy, Sports Warehouse, Tractor Supply.  It also included a run across the border to Los Algodones for a $5. haircut and $30 teeth cleaning.  Big jump in parking fees at the border, from $6-10.  No photos ...

Next move was further east on the I-8, with a stop in Gila Bend for dump, fill, and fuel, before heading south down to Ajo.  We went a bit further down Bates Well road to some spots that I checked out on my bike last year.  There were fewer than normal campers near the entrance at Darby Well road, but a good scattering further south.  There were still lots of potentially good spots to choose from, but my choices were limited to those without cholla cactus.  While I can usually avoid contact with the nasty things, I don't want any chance of Bailey getting into them while on the hunt.  They are so bad because they are needle sharp and have barbs, so they stay firmly imbedded in any flesh that contacts them.  And there are often loose balls of thorns laying around on the ground, or blowing about in the wind to attack sandal feet or paws.  They can also be hard on bike tires, as I've found out the hard way - having had to carry my previous bicycle several kilometers back with flat tires.  Present e-bike has puncture resistant tires filled with 'slime', so I haven't had an issue for a while - knock on wood.  And now, I also carry a spare tube, tools, and a tire pump for such occasions.

 So this was the selected spot with no cholla cactus, but almost every bit of brush here still will snag clothing or scratch you upon contact.   

Being winter here, I have never seen a scorpion or rattler, who stay out of sight during the cooler months.

This is right on the boundary of Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, so there are a few of these Organ Pipe Cactus, found in few other locations.

There are a few lizards out sunning themselves that keep Bailey occupied.

There are a myriad of old trails and dusty roads leading all over the desert, and most are pretty good for biking and exploration.  Behind the fenced area is a water collection facility, designed to collect and save rainwater for wildlife in the area.  This one had a whole flock of Quail who were taking advantage of the rare water source.

There was practically a beaten quail path leading to the water from the open desert.

I'm sure there are coyotes and foxes around here as in most desert locales, but I have not heard any coyotes, or seen them on my trail cameras, though there are lots of tracks.  I did see a pair of Javelina foraging in their natural habitat - in the trash back of a Dollar Store in town!

Decided to power up the Starlink (V2) so it could download it's updates, even though it is not on active duty for this winter.  Once again tested the new 12v power supply and router, and all seemed to work fine!

Funny thing is, it seems to work just fine, indoors, sitting on it's tripod on the bed!  Who knew!

We haven't yet formulated a plan on where to go next, or when.  Until then, we'll be right here, enjoying the weather, the solitude, and the scenery!

Quartzsite to Anza-Borrego

 We were in Quartzsite when the blog last got updated, and there were still things to do there!  One of the things was a hike up Cunningham peak, off to the west, overlooking the Coloarado river and California.

The hike up was steeper and tougher than I remembered, but at least the weather was perfect, and almost calm.

 

Check out the video below for a great perspective! Full screen for best effect!

 

 

 

Still not a full complement of vendors in town yet, but enough to find some interesting treasures!

Really wanted one of these, but since neither I nor the vendor selling it had any idea WHAT it is, I managed to resist the temptation!  Later on, the vendor had a theory, but nothing conclusive.  If you know what it is, or what it does - leave a comment!

I also had another package from Florida that failed to deliver in Quartzsite, thanks to the efficiency and dedication of the USPS!  But amazingly, I did have one successful delivery - but only because it came via UPS instead.  It was a new 12v power supply for my Starlink dish - which I am not even using this winter.  Surprisingly, it came with two routers.  I didn't really need the routers, but never like to turn down new toys - and it was approaching Christmas after all!  Thanks Santa ;-)

After waiting around for the mostly failed deliveries (see rant in previous post) in Quartzsite, we were pushing the limits of our 2 week stay, so it was time to move on.

We headed over to the southern boundary of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, after a couple of stops in Yuma to fuel up and reprovision.

Some things are starting to get a bit too predictable :-)  When I got to 'my' spot in the desert, a nice couple from Oregon were there - much like the last 2-3 years.  Are we getting in a rut or what? When I decided to ask them when they were planning to leave, they addressed me by first name!  They were about ready to depart (as I suspected from past interactions - they are predictable too), so I got my spot after a couple days delay.   Bailey took advantage of the trees around to hone his climbing skills - which clearly could use some work, as you can tell from the video.  Luckily, I was there to catch him!

 

Christmas coyote came to visit ...

After a failing grade in Tree Climbing 101, Bailey was studying for his Pedator/Prey 101 class.  He must have missed a chapter or two there as well, because 5 seconds after I took this video of the coyote, he spotted it and proceeded to chase it away from camp.  And that wasn't the only time.  He did it twice more!

After finally camping near some good trees, it took me at least three days to find my hammock - which was hiding in the basement!  But then, it was put to good use. I even slept in it a couple times.

We had another surprising visitor one day.  This Great Egret landed in a tree right above us for a look around, then went out onto the ground to hunt.  I have never seen one before in such a dry desert environment.  They are somewhat common around Yuma however with all the canals and ponds and greenery related to irrigation.

Sure missing all the snow and frigid temperatures around home ...

Had the bike out quite a few times, including this bike/hike trip to the nearby Mountain Palm Spring oasis.

While I believe the large Border Patrol checkpoints on I-8 east of Yuma and near El Centro are now gone, I was surprised to find the small one north of Ocotillo on the Imperial highway still open on occasion.  One day, on the I-8 west of El Centro, I saw what appeared to be a single pickup truck pulled over by the border patrol.  There were SEVEN trucks there, all with lights flashing.  Further west, I saw FOUR more BP trucks headed that way code 3!  Not sure what was going on!

After two weeks in Anza-Borrego, it's back to the Yuma area for a bit ... check back later to see what we are up to ;-)