Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Boondocking

We headed out of Dogpound South last Wednesday towards a spot over near the La Paz Valley. We have been there before but it was a long while back, in fact almost 6 years ago was the last time we left there. It was great to get back to that wonderful spot. It is quiet and off the beaten track and although the madness that is Quartzite in January is only an hour away it doesn't spill over towards our spot. Although this a great spot for chillin' and riding the Can-Am it would not be so good for the ponies as it is pretty rocky. I spent some time riding some old trails that I had walked extensively 6 years ago, but although Blue II can cover a lot more ground in a lot less time than Shank's Pony he is restricted to existing trails where on foot you can roam wherever your mind tends to lead.

Some of this weeks trails


My riding partners changed on an almost daily basis, sometimes Brenda came along, but when she opted to enjoy the peace and quiet in camp Max was more than willing to climb aboard and see the country.

Max along for the ride
 He is probably wondering where to get some of those Doggles that Emmi from Montana has for riding the desert.

Our low profile toy hauler

Camp along the wash

Great for an ATV but not so great for horses

A Panorama from atop TV Hill
 Long time readers will recall some shots from atop this hill taken back in January 2011. I am here to tell you it was a lot quicker and certainly easier on the lungs getting back up here on Blue II rather than Shank's Mare. If you click on this shot and enlarge it the red arrow is pointing at our site this year.

 This quartz outcrop is just poking out of the desert.



Just a shot of a small hill along the trail

Sunset with what I call TV Hill in the centre.

Blue II waiting patiently for Brenda and I to investigate a mine flooded with water. 

Doing our part to repatriate some Carbon back into the atmosphere

Max and Maya chillin' in camp.

An old Mine Site

A beautiful vista




An interesting piece of wood, looks like a leg roast

 I stumbled on these store fronts along the trail, I have no idea how or why they came to be there. Out back are pens that look like stabling but not much sign of critters being held there.
Star Struck


An interesting piece of wood that I found along the wash.

We thoroughly enjoy our stay in the desert, I think between Brenda and I, we consumed about 7 or 8 books and still saw a lot of country. Although we didn't see to many other folks out there it is obvious that we are pretty pokey when it comes to ATV'ing, we rather enjoy moseying along at 6 or 8 miles an hours snooping in every nook and cranny and watching for the things that those hurtling along at breakneck speeds might miss.


Everybody is going somewhere. Those are all trails in the sky

5 comments:

  1. Glad you guys enjoyed our spot again--Mike and I sure want to try and get over there again before the season ends.

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  2. Nice area up there around Bouse. Lots of great ATVing and Jeep roads all over the place. And the best part.....far from the maddening crowds of Quartzsite.

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  3. Since this is our first year in the Southwest we are still learning the area. We'll be leaving Quartzsite soon so we can explore a few other areas.
    We've also noticed a lot of ATVing being done at Breakneck Speeds and that is not our style but we are considering getting a Side-by-side so we can see places the truck is not allowed.
    Be Safe and Enjoy the Freedom of this Beautiful Land.

    It's about time.

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  4. I'm old-fashioned, but I miss the horses.

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  5. Do you mind a suggestion from a long-time desert dweller (but now not)? Instead of a surface campfire, try digging a small trench hole. Not too deeply...maybe about a foot deep. Make your fire in that. You will find you have no trouble maintaining a fire in the wind, the smoke mostly rises instead of spewing out on all sides and you can bury the spent fire when you leave, scattering the fire stones so little evidence remains to mar the desert.

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